Suburban Diva

Win 30K doing what you already do everyday

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 18:28:51 CDT

It's a question that doesn't have one simple answer. A riddle that will produce as many different responses as there are...well, riddles. And although there isn't only one right answer, everyone wins when we Moms think about the question… What does motherhood mean to you? In celebration of their 30th Anniversary, Huggies is offering a forum for Moms to answer that very question in 60 second video clips that may be featured in an upcoming online ad campaign. Go to GenerationHuggies.com to get the information, as well as to enter their sweepstakes for a chance to win $30,000 and tell the world about your journey through this beautiful mess we call motherhood. I'm going to be helping spread--and gather--those powerful words from Moms next weekend here in Florida, but until then, check out the motherhood.com a truly remarkable site that is absolutely going to change the way Moms use the Internet. You really don't want to miss this...

This Just in: Diva in The St. Pete TImes

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 07:27:07 CDT

Are you part of the fun? Read my daily contributions to Whoa Momma, the new parenting blog over at the St. Pete Times Go Momma feature. And if you still haven't gotten enough daily diva, read my blog.

Beau-Coup

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 07:25:33 CDT

I am enjoying a baby-powdered scented personalized candle as I write this, and it's absolutely delicious… But I digress. I mention the candle because it's this adorable favor I picked up from Beau-coup Favors, a company with the most amazing selection of wedding favors I've ever seen. When I got married back at the time of the Louisiana Purchase, I think our only choice was what color mesh bag we put our Jordan almonds in….Parties have certainly come a long way. And that's another reason why I love this stuff. Not limited just to wedding favors, they have an incredible variety of creative gifts for bridal showers, baby showers, and any other occasion you can come up with. What about some festive favors for your Book Club or Bunko? That next fundraising event? Or even a holiday party for work or friends? With reasonable minimum orders (sometimes 10 or less) this is totally doable. So be sure to check out all of the exciting favors at Beau-Coup. I promise you'll be inspired at all of the merry possibilities… Find this in Fall Wedding Favors

New at Newbaby.com

Thu, 01 May 2008 13:35:46 CDT

There's lots of new things happening at Newbaby.com--so be sure to check it out!

Baby Einstein Product Review

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 17:35:07 CDT

I've long been a fan of the Baby Einstein DVD series. My 4 year old daughter suffered from early hearing difficulties in her infancy. As a result, she was severely speech delayed even after her hearing was corrected with surgery. From the age of 3, she was enrolled in speech therapy, but I struggled to find at-home activities to foster her language skills. Discovering the Baby Einstein series was a huge tool in her progress, and I know it was instrumental in the many milestones she has achieved since. Recently, I was able to share the Baby Einstein Baby's First Sounds: Discoveries for Little Ears, DVD with her little sister--my one year old. She does not have the same speech and hearing issues, but I certainly know from experience that you can never start too early introducing these basic concepts of speech. At the opening credits, she squealed with delight. Together we watched the puppets, babies, and people make basic sounds that she tried to mimic. She was enchanted by all of the bright colors and shapes, and everything was accompanied by classical music. She wasn't simply watching, she was actually engaged. The bonus features were truly a bonus. Lots of fun little clips and activities to choose from. As a mother of four children from ages 1-12, I can tell you honestly that finding appropriate children's programming is a daily struggle. Often I feel as though I'm making concessions on the things they watch. The Baby Einstein series is a refreshing exception. It is rare to find shows designed for young children that aren't simply dumbed-down versions for an older audience. You only have to watch her clap her hands and smile in recognition that this was made especially for little ones just like her. Baby Einstein Baby's First Sounds: Discoveries for Little Ears is a rare win-win for a parent. An entertained baby engaged in something that's good for them.

Book Review--"The Mermaid Chair"

Thu, 17 May 2007 08:43:39 CDT

�The Mermaid Chair,� by Sue Monk Kidd, is a story of one woman�s journey to her self, by way of an affair with a member of the clergy. I am not giving too much away with that admission, as the author declares it in the opening paragraph of the prologue: �In the middle of my marriage, when I was above all Hugh�s wife and Dee�s mother, one of those unambiguous women with no desire to disturb the universe, I fell in love with a Benedictine monk.� This affair is just one of the personal crises Jessie Sullivan faces at this pivotal point in her life. She begins to confront these issues when she spends an extended visit on the South Carolina barrier island of her childhood home to tend to her mother who is suffering a mental breakdown. Haunted by a crippling past secret, her mother cuts off her own finger as a gruesome attempt at penance. As Jessie attempts to help her mother heal from her physical and emotional injuries, she ends up confronting wounds of her own. Still disturbed and racked with guilt over her father�s death 30 years earlier; she questions her marriage, her faith, and her discontent with her static definition of her world in which ��love and habit blurred so thoroughly to make a life.� (p.30) Home is a place she had avoided for many years, as both the memory of her father and her mother�s increasing religious zeal is uncomfortable and painful for her. Jessie prefers to dismiss the importance of the rich natural surroundings and colorful characters with their unique and eclectic customs, but these are far too vital to her personal history to be denied forever. One such island artifact, the Mermaid Chair, is almost held as an ancient relic in the monastery. It is said to have a certain magic, and Jessie will discover how it plays a role in her past, along with other local tales that read less like superstition and more like truth than she would have liked. Jessie and Brother Thomas�another character at a personal turning point--fall in love fast and hard. Each believes in the beginning that their love was clandestine; spiritual almost. They carry on for many weeks in this euphoric denial before either confronts their real lives�she with a husband, he, about to be married to the church. Throughout their sobering reality and story you�ve heard a thousand times of a spouse justifying their infidelity through a romantic loftiness, is an infused aura of mysticism. Religious symbols, island folklore, and good old-fashioned family secrets combine to make the book a page-turner despite the initial knowledge of the premise. It works because the affair is not the climax; merely the vehicle to get there. And with this discovery, Jessie eventually finds a ��release in knowing the truth no matter how anguishing it is. You come finally to the irreducible thing, and there�s nothing left to do but pick it up and hold it. Then, at least, you can enter the severe mercy of acceptance.� (p.304) This light and breezy sea-side novel makes an excellent beach read, sitting in a chair in the sand�mermaid or otherwise.

Book Review--"The Wife," by Meg Wolitzer

Fri, 16 Mar 2007 09:48:49 CDT

I suppose that a novel describing the complexities and nuances on the institution of modern marriage is nothing new, but the dark humor, smart insight and shocking plot twist from the wife�s perspective in Meg Wolitzer�s, �The Wife,� is something you haven�t read before. The story is told by the wife of a famous novelist, Joe Castleman. Joan chronicles their long marriage with both humorous and poignant reflections on its intricacies and the delicate balance between their expected roles, after this declaration in the opening paragraph of the novel: �The moment I decided to leave him, the moment I thought, enough, we were thirty-five thousand feet above the ocean, hurtling forward but giving the illusion of stillness and tranquility.� (p.9) We get to know the couple through Joan�s reflections and memories over the course of their marriage. Joe was her creative writing professor at Smith College in 1956, and the two found themselves attracted to one another, despite the teacher-student connection and the fact that Joe was already married, his wife having just given birth to a baby daughter. Joan admits to being flattered by the attention he paid to not only her, but to her writing�often praising her efforts and encouraging her to consider a career in the field. And that made him almost irresistible to a girl who would often muse, �I�ve always had a fear of being small and ordinary. �How can I have just one life?� I used to ask my mother incredulously when I was twelve and sat at the dining room table in our apartment in New York after school, eating a cruller.� (p. 41) But it was Joe�s career that became the extraordinary one. While Joan tended to the home, their 3 children, and Joe�s needs and ego, his novels became increasingly popular and distinguished, and he soon became one of the most celebrated authors of their generation. Even though she describes the typical marital problems and trials such as difficulties with the children, arguments and even infidelity, it is not quite clear until the end what becomes the breaking point for Joan. They argue, and Joe pleads, � �Every marriage is just two people striking a bargain,� he went on in a softer tone. �I traded, you traded. So maybe it wasn�t even.� � She counters with, � �No, it wasn�t,� I said. �It was the worst deal in the world, and I grabbed it.� � (p. 207) You could argue that the choices the Castlemans make are simply a product of the times in which they lived. Joan describes the writer�s scene in New York during the 60�s very well, so that their behavior is very natural to the reader. You could argue that they are both flawed characters. You could even argue that since the story is told from Joan�s point of view, that we are only hearing one side. But the point is, the controversial plot and ending will have you arguing something, because it is too delicious not to. You may not agree with Joan Castleman�s definition of what �the wife� is or should be, but after reading this very well-written and piercing novel, you�ll never quite look at that role the same way again.

Book Review--"The Sea," by John Banville

Mon, 26 Feb 2007 07:13:59 CST

"I said somewhere already--no time to go back and look for it now, caught up all at once as I am in the toils of this thought--that what I found in Anna from the first was a way of fulfilling the fantasy of myself. I did not know quite what I meant when I said it, but thinking now on it a little I suddenly see. Or do I. Let me try to tease it out, I have plenty of time. These Sunday nights are endless." (p.160) "The Sea," by John Banville, is written exactly in that way; a toil of thought that must be teased out. It is much more focused than a typical stream of consciousness, but the narration is definitely one of an unedited thought process, sometimes raw, sometimes annoying, but always intimate. Max Thorden, the main character and narrator is grieving the recent loss of his wife Anna, by returning to a beach house by the sea where he used to vacation as a child 50 years before. His memory of a girl he met there; Chloe, intersperse with his memory of his wife, and the reader often has no idea why there is such a close association, or any association at all until the very end where it becomes cruelly obvious. The writing is beautiful, yet sometimes distracting. At times, you will not like Max much; you'll find him arrogant and self-absorbed. You will wonder why he gives the same amount of attention to his relationship with his daughter as that of the neighbor's daily constitutional. You'll wonder how this novel ever won the Man Booker Prize. But then you will come across passages that will make you appreciate his keen insight and vivid dead-on descriptions such as this one which is an answer to his daughter's assessment: "You live in the past." He writes, "To be concealed, protected, guarded, that is all I truly wanted, to burrow down into a place of womby warmth and cower there, hidden from the sky's indifferent gaze and the harsh air's damagings. That is why the past is such a retreat for me, I go there eagerly, rubbing my hands and shaking off the cold present and the colder future." (p.45) These types of long-winded soliloquies, however interesting, are tough to pull off endlessly over a 197 page novel without something actually happening. And Banville waits a long time to show what happened to bring all of these memories, fragments of thought and seemingly unconnected reverie together, which although short, makes the book longer often times than it needs to be. Does the clever ending and tidy retying of the story make up for unraveling so unrecognizably it in the first place? His personal reflection will affect each reader differently, and will be relevant (or not) for a variety of reasons. As Max notes later when wandering around the old familiar cottage, "�for memories are always eager to match themselves seamlessly to the things and places of a revisited past." (p.110). It is up to individual experience to determine whether your memories attach themselves to his. But everyone will recognize a truly amazingly written work, and will eventually recognize the value of accompanying Max on the universal journey through grief.

"A Little Love Story," Review by Tracey Henry

Thu, 18 Jan 2007 12:08:10 CST

In the spirit of romantic February, I went searching for a little love story. So naturally, "A Little Love Story," by Roland Merullo caught my attention. In this novel, "little," does not refer to small or simple--it is a complex, sensual story with dynamic characters and complicated themes, but told in such a way that you will be fascinated by every page. The novel begins with the typical boy meets girl scene, but from the effortless wit and ease of prose, you can tell that this story will be anything but ordinary. Jake Entwhistle and Janet Rossi begin a romance that is tangled with the ghosts of past relationships and the reality of Janet�s illness, cystic fibrosis. Jake tells his story and his struggles unapologetically that is absolutely human without being whiny or preachy; just refreshingly honest. Even with such heavy themes, the author weaves through it all with such a graceful wit and unexpected wisdom that tackling these issues romantically is completely natural. Powerful, yet completely unexpected images grace each page and you are immediately transported into a place of understanding by his unusual, yet perfect imagery. On page nineteen he describes walking up to the restaurant on their first date: "�I was greeted by an imaginary messenger from the world of ugly thoughts. A troll, a goblin, an ugly little creature from the kingdom of fear. His message went something along the lines of: Why do this again?" As their relationship progresses at the same rate as Janet's terminal disease, there are many unusual obstacles that the couple must face. The reader can't help but root them on, encouraging them to fight even when it becomes clear that enemy is too big. But Jake never gives up, even approaching the situation from an angle his deceased father once described in the area of business dealings, but ultimately proved invaluable for Jake's biggest dilemma. "The mistake some fellows make is when they a problem--let's say it's a bad problem, an almost unsolvable problem�they see this problem and they either throw up their hands and surrender, and walk away from it, or they rush in like novice firemen with hoses spraying every which way. Sometimes, though, the thing to do is to sit back, hold back�you ponder�But usually if you just let your mind scamper around outside the fences for a while, you see one small action you might take�a word, a shift in tactics. You tug on the knotted-up ball of string, once, here, and things begin to loosen." (p.203) Against my normal custom, I read some reviews on this book before I actually read it, and so I was aware of some criticisms of the ending which left more than a few feeling as though there were too many unanswered questions. However, I didn't feel that way--perhaps because I'd been warned--but I'd like to think it was more due to a different type of optimism that the author created. Merullo describes it as, "the beautiful beast of hope was prowling through the hospital corridors." (p.260) I rather think that beautiful beast prowled throughout the entire 272 pages, sometimes laughing, sometimes crying, but always enlightening.

Book Review--"Saving Fish From Drowning," by Amy Tan

Mon, 18 Dec 2006 08:39:30 CST

Although a work of fiction, Amy Tan�s, "Saving Fish from Drowning," is a novel based on the real circumstances of 11 missing American tourists in Burma, as told by the recently deceased Bibi Chen, a prominent art dealer in San Francisco who was the original trip coordinator before her untimely and violent death two weeks before departure. Narrating a story from a ghostly beyond gives the "living" characters a unique dimension. Bibi doesn"t understand or explain her metaphysical state, but is in a position in which she can read provide hidden, yet essential nuances of the story. "How I knew all this, I had no notion at first, didn't even wonder how I knew. But I sensed others as clearly as I sensed myself; their motives and desires, guilt feelings and regrets, joys and fears, as well as the shades of truth within what they said, and what they refrained from saying�It was shocking and effortless. The Mind of Others--that's what Buddha would have called it." (p. 34) Unlike the traditional omnipresent third person narration, these facts filtered and spoken through an eccentric character such as Bibi, makes the story that much more enticing. The group of 12 assembled friends and acquaintances of Bibi's begin their journey in southeastern China with plans to travel the famed Burma Road shortly after Bibi's funeral. The group had relied exclusively on Bibi's knowledge of the area, meticulous itinerary and months of preparation for this trip. She often laments that had they followed her plans, much of their trouble would have been avoided. But not knowing the language or the customs of a military and tribal state such as Burma, the tourists quickly find themselves in a precarious situation. Without giving away too many essential plot details, through a series of mistakes, language and political obstacles and some tribal lore, the group disappears into the Burmese jungle. The world watches the story unfold on international television, although the Burmese government strictly controls all information coming or going into the country, so the full story doesn't always appear whole or in piecemeal, which contributes to the impossibility of rescue. Developing 12 distinct characters equally (13 if you count the narrator herself) with no clear "star" is not an easy task in a novel, and in the beginning the reader may be confused as to whom is being referred to and why. But soon enough, the distinctions and interesting idiosyncrasies of each person will come out through Bibi's colorful descriptions as well as with how they all interact with one another and behave during crisis. Fans of Amy Tan�s many other novels, such as "The Joy Luck Club," "The Kitchen God's Wife," and more recently, "The Bonesetter�s Daughter," will recognize her brilliant style of illustrating the exotic of the Far East without saturating its flavor for western palates. And her amazing knack of capturing the beauty of language is present on every page. Readers will find in this book exactly what she describes on page 147, "I have always loved works of fiction precisely for their illusions, for the author's sleight-of-hand in showing me the magic, what appeared in the right hand but not the left, the funny monkeys chattering in the tree branches and not the poachers and their empty shell casings below." ©2006 Tracey Henry

Book Gift Giving Guide

Tue, 05 Dec 2006 12:03:38 CST

Giving books as gifts is one of my favorite holiday traditions. Not only is the book a present in itself, but it begs to be shared and given to others later which is a priceless gift no matter what the cover price. This is my shopping list for the local bookstore. I think it just about covers everyone on my list this year. Cookbooks are an excellent choice because they are something you never buy for yourself, but always appreciate nonetheless. You can always pair it with some sort of kitchen gadget or recipe from the book to make it extra special. Big thick hardbacks with glossy pictures are so appetizing for this particular subject, so for my particularly domestic friends: Barefoot Contessa at Home: Everyday Recipes You'll Make Over and Over Again, by Ina Garten, Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats--A Year of Deliciously Different Dinners (A 30-Minute Meal Cookbook), by Rachel Ray or The Five in Ten Cookbook, by Paula Hamilton, which cooks up dishes (including dinner!) with 5 ingredients in 10 minutes or less. 'Tis true. For the introspective moralists amongst the group, might I suggest, The Mercy of Thin Air, by Ronlyn Domingue, The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho, Miracles on the Water: The Heroic Survivors of a World War II U-Boat Attack, by Tom Nagorski, and Copper Sun, by Sharon M. Draper. Some husband-tested, male gender approved selections for the men folk since giving Chick-Lit would be an even worse offense than dragging him to the movie "Steel Magnolias": Telegraph Days, by Larry McMutrey, Judge and Jury, and Beach Road, both by James Patterson, and The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town, by John Grisham. For the tender-hearted: Rococo: A Novel, by Adriana Trigiani, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, by Jonathan Safran Foer, or The Mitford Series, by Jan Karon. Team these selections with a Starbuck�s gift card for a nice Chai latte. For the not-so tender-hearted: Maps for Lost Lovers, by Nadeen Aslam, and for the inner-voyeur: My Secret, by Frank Warren from the popular website "PostSecret.com." And for those hearts that can take absolute destruction, Marley & Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog, by John Grogan. Wrap generously in Kleenex. People who I despise but ended up having to buy for anyway this year will receive: Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books, by Azar Nafisi or The Known World, by Edward P. Jones. I apologize as I realize these are two highly acclaimed books, but so disappointing and tortuously long. A number of popular and best-selling authors have new releases available just in time for the holidays, including Stephen King�s latest, Lisey�s Story, Dear John, by Nicholas Sparks, For One More Day, by Mitch Albom, so perhaps my more mainstream friends, will see a few of these in their stockings. Some more safe bets for people you just aren't sure of: The Collectors, by David Baldacci, First Impressions, by Nora Roberts, or Motor Mouth, by Janet Evanovich. I hope your holidays are filled with many hardcover happy endings.

Book Review--"The Book of Bright Ideas"

Mon, 06 Nov 2006 09:49:12 CST

Sandra Kring, the author of The Book of Bright Ideas, had one very big one: to write a charming story with fascinatingly eccentric characters for this novel. The story takes place in the summer of 1961 for 9 year-old �Button� Peters in rural Wisconsin. The sleepy town gets quite an awakening when Freeda Malone and her kid sister, Winnalee, colorfully arrive. Although Winnalee and Button hit it off immediately, the reception isn�t so warm for Freeda; an outspoken, unapologetic flirt who earns raised eyebrows from both the men and the women, but for different reasons. Winnalee strikes the town as bit odd herself, carrying around an urn of her mother�s ashes and a large journal which she has titled, �The Book of Bright Ideas.� Here, she lists all of her childhood wisdom she learns as she goes along. She explains why on page 21, �Because I�m writing clues. Itty-bitty clues that you have to put together. You know, clues to the secrets of life. So you learn how it works, and you don�t keep makin� the same mistakes over and over again.� Button isn�t the only affected by her new friendship. Her parents and her Aunt Verdella undergo major changes as a result. Perhaps most drastically is that with Button�s mother, Jewel, who unearths a lost piece of herself reluctantly through Freeda. The girls notice the drastic change in Jewel, and note in their book: Bright Idea #91: When the weather�s bad and your lights go out, have a pajama party. Eat till you feel sick, hula-hoop, paint your faces. Catch fireflies, and dance naked in the rain. If you do, then your bare butt will light up like a firefly after it�s been let out of a jar. (p.155) Kring writes the entire story from Button�s perspective which is innocent and easy, without being simple. It is a fast read; the engaging story propels you through to the surprising end. The �Bright Ideas� can be silly or amusing; but always somehow poignant. Bright Idea #89: If you ever don�t know which direction to go in, or you start moving in the right direction but then get lost along the way, don�t get rattled and start moving fast, this way and that, Instead, stand still and be quiet. Then you�ll be showed which way to go.� (p.115) But not all of the answers of life can be found in a book, no matter how sweetly written. When the Malones� tragic past collides with their present, no one is quite sure what to do. But Button sums it up best�as children often do�when she realizes, �It seems to me that after someone sweeps across your life like a red-hot flame, peeling back the shutters that sat over your heart and your mind and setting free your sweetest dreams or your worst nightmares, after things cool down you�ve got two choices. You can either slip back into your old self, your old life, tucking those things you were too scared to look at back into hiding, or you keep those parts of yourself out until you get so used to them that they don�t scare you anymore and they just become part of who you are.� (p.303) If you are looking for a bright idea for your next reading selection, this is certainly a bright one among the shelves.

Book Review--"Snow Flower and the Secret Fan"

Wed, 27 Sep 2006 08:06:44 CDT

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, by Lisa See, is a story about the friendship of two young girls in remote China during the nineteenth century. Although their lifestyle is quite foreign to modern Americans, the universal themes of love, friendship, marriage and children are time and borderless, so the reader can relate nicely. Lily and Snow Flower grew up in a society in which women were not valued. In fact, Lily describes the general way of life in this patriarchal society here: "We women hope to have five children who reach adulthood. For that to happen, we must get pregnant every one to two years. Many of those babies die through miscarriages, at childbirth, or from illnesses. Girls--so susceptible to weakness from poor food and neglect--never outgrow their vulnerability�Baby boys, so precious, can die just as easily, their bodies too young to have taken root, their souls too tempting for spirits from the underworld. Then, as men, they are at risk from infection from cuts, food poisoning, problems in the fields or on roads, or hearts that can�t stand the stress of watching over an entire household." (p.150) The girls spent most of their days merely surviving their harsh reality, and describe few joys, with the exception of their friendship. This bond was considered so important, that the girls were not merely friends, but laotongs, meaning their relationship was actually arranged by a matchmaker much like marriage, elevating its importance, and making it a match for life. Like many women of their generation and circumstance, Lily and Snow Flower corresponded in the ancient tradition of nu shu, a secret form of writing rumored only to be known by women, passed down through the generations and kept hidden from men. The girls were able to visit one another during certain times of the year and festivals, but much of their communication was through nu shu on a fan passed between them. Much of the interpretation of nu shu was through context, so it was warned that both the writer and the reader must take caution that context was carefully observed. Unfortunately, our narrator, Lily, would fail to heed this, and misunderstand a correspondence that would eventually drive a wedge between the two laotongs. Along with the fascinating practice of nu shu, See also does a masterful job of describing and educating the reader on the bizarre Chinese custom of footbinding. Strangely, this horrific practice was a rite of passage for many young girls of the time, and it was done to ensure a good marriage, as "golden lilies," or properly bound feet were considered the ultimate in beauty and prized greatly. While the fascinating historical references add to the story, the pleasure comes in the complex dynamics between the characters and the well-written plot. While a dedicated and thorough researcher, See is a more accomplished storyteller, and the reader will not help but to draw comparisons between the delicate writing of Amy Tan�s The Joy Luck Club, or Arthur Golden�s, Memoirs of a Geisha.

Review--"The Book Thief"

Wed, 23 Aug 2006 10:11:29 CDT

The email came as demand more than a recommendation. �Drop whatever you are doing and run out and get The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak. It says it is juvenile fiction, but don�t believe it. It is narrated by Death.� Has a more intriguing request ever been made? How could I do anything but obey? And it was well worth it. The Book Thief refers to Liesel Meminger, a young German girl growing up with her foster parents during Hitler�s rise to power and World War II. Her only form of both therapy and escape during this cruel point in history is primarily through the books that she steals from strange places and circumstances, thus earning her nickname. For a German family not members of the Nazi party and doing things in direct opposition of F�hrer�s mandates, life was difficult. �Imagine smiling after a slap in the face. Then think of doing it twenty-four hours a day. That was the business of hiding a Jew.� (p.211) The book thief does not act alone�she has intriguing accomplices along the way that fill in her story and her childhood in unexpected ways. Her neighbors along the poor Himmel Street become a colorful cast of characters that paint a different German perspective than what we�re perhaps expecting in contemporary literature. In addition to its quirkiness, it is a suspenseful and deeply intriguing novel. And what of our unique narrator, Death? He is odd, and strangely heartwarming. Death is not the grim reaper we have imagined him to be�there is no scythe, no cloak. In this story, Death introduces himself, �You will know me well enough and soon enough, depending on a diverse range of variables. It suffices to say that at some point in time, I will be standing over you, as genially as possible. Your soul will be in my arms. A color will be perched on my shoulder. I will carry you gently away.� (p.4) He is not violent, nor the cause or decider, but merely the result. Death is surprisingly astounded and touched by humans. He is not depressing despite his vocation. He is capable of observing and appreciating beauty. He relays this entire story with kindness that seems a paradox. Does he have a heart? He must, because when describing Liesel�s best friend, the lovable Rudy Steiner, he says, �He does something to me, that boy. Every time. It�s his only detriment. He steps on my heart. He makes me cry.� (p.531) He illustrates that heart as a circular one as opposed to a linear human heart which eventually stops. Zusak�s writing is superb�you must envy his ability to narrate over 500 pages without becoming macabre. Even when speaking of his ghastly task, it is tragically beautiful, as almost every sentence of this book. �His soul sat up. It met me. Those kind souls always do�the best ones. The ones who rise up and say, �I know who you are and I am ready. Not that I want to go, of course, but I will come.� Those souls are always light because more of them have been put out.� (p.532). In fact, if you aren�t touched to tears by the end of this story, then you have no soul for Death to collect. The Book Thief will certainly steal your heart.

Book Review--"The Wonder Spot"

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 19:57:39 CDT

For a little lighter fare to wind down the summer, Melissa Bank�s, The Wonder Spot, may be a wonderful choice. Bank, who was one of the first �Chick Lit� authors, and arguably one of the best with her best-selling novel, The Girls� Guide to Hunting and Fishing, doesn�t disappoint with her second novel which is written with the same intelligent wit as her debut. We watch Sophie Applebaum, a girl from a small Pennsylvania town, grow up and grow into herself. She wrestles with all of the things every young person does; her family, education, career, faith and relationships. The book begins with a scene when she is 12 at a friend�s bat mitzvah, and we are introduced to her family, and the delicate intricacies between her parents and 2 brothers. The story skips to college, and then to her job hunt in Manhattan. Each scene reveals more of this character who is deeper than she appears. Sophie�s perspective is so witty and insightful; she draws you in with her simple wisdom that comes from her poignant observations. She describes how she feels after a seemingly mundane conversation with her current boyfriend. �Up until that moment, I�d been at the earliest stage of love, when you feel it will turn you into the person you want to be. Now, his gentle voice and sage advice took me to a later stage: I felt I needed to pretend to be a better person than I was so he�d keep loving me. This was hard, because it made me hate him.� (p. 113) Sophie seems to spend much of her life lost in a sea of mediocrity, never quite attaining success in any area of her life, which she recognizes but seems powerless to change. It isn�t laziness or apathy, but rather she seems to be waiting for something she can�t even name to realize eventual happiness. Her family and friends constantly remind her of her failings and missed potential, which she confuses with her own dreams and goals. At times, you want to shake some sense into her, but then her delightful sense of humor comes through, and you can�t help but laugh and shake your head in resolve instead. She says things that we had wish we thought of. Of a particularly thin and beautiful woman she spies at a restaurant she observes, �Hovering beside him was a girl so thin she might have faxed herself; her sheaf of friends joined her and folded themselves into the next booth.� (p.262) In the end, quietly and without the high drama of the obvious, she comes to her own place of peace�her own Wonder Spot. She announces to herself�the only audience that matters, �With so much sky and so much river, you couldn�t help but seeing the big picture. It was what you already knew, but crowding into the subway or rushing to a movie, you only saw it for a second, and close up. Now I took a good long look. I�d always heard you couldn�t see stars in Manhattan because of all the lights. But here they all were. Here was my night in shining armor.� (p.313) And that spot of wonder doesn�t look like anyone else�s, and that is the wonderful point of this book. By Tracey Henry

Book Review--"Best Friends"

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 19:53:51 CDT

The novel entitled, Best Friends, by Martha Moody, is not an ambiguous or deceiving one; it is indeed a story about Sally and Clare, best friends. But the story itself is not as predictable as we follow these 2 college roommates through the next two decades of their close friendship. Clare and Sally are assigned one another as roommates at the beginning of their freshman year at a small Midwestern college. Clare Mann, the narrator, is from a modest family in Ohio, while Sally Rose is from a very wealthy, colorful family from L.A. Clare is somewhat seduced by this very different, glamorous lifestyle, but her friendship with Sally is much more substantive. Clare is certainly the darker, more cynical of the two girls; but both are very smart. Of Sally, Clare notes, "I loved her adjectives. Her adjectives took possession of whatever she was describing; their precision made them inarguable, tiny facts rather than opinions." (p.21) Almost immediately, we learn of the major role that Sally's father, Sid, plays in his daughter's life. Their relationship is a close one, as Clare discovers during her visits to California which become quite frequent over the years. Clare's relationship with Sally is heavily influenced by her father and other members of the Rose family, which not only causes some friction at times, but also allows Clare some intimate glimpses of the unique family dynamic. There are many major events that happen to both of the young women--Sally becomes a lawyer while Clare, a doctor. There are marriages, deaths, births, and family skeletons; however the life altering experiences are not always the obviously dramatic ones, but rather the smaller, yet significant details that pass between the two women. Central to the story and to the friendship, are the family secrets Sid covets. "We recognize Sid's tragedy, that a person can be possessed of wondrous gifts--verve, imagination, drive, even the ability to love and be loved--and still make a glittering slag heap of his life." ( p.482) Clare will learn of many of these gifts and deceptions, and be forced to decide what to do with her knowledge of the truth. She is often confronted with the dilemma of whether friendship means total disclosure, or protecting people whom you love from the ugly or harmful truth. Sid will not make this middle ground easy to find for Clare, and she is often unsure of the right direction, even making huge mistakes that cost the Rose family dearly. But ultimately it is an illustration of how utterly human these characters are--all flawed in some way--but doing their best to make wrongs right in the shades of gray. Moody's writing is casual, yet subtly profound. "It's hard to give up a memory. No matter what comes after, it's impossible to forget a small amount of happiness, to admit that it was a fluke, an isolated moment in time with no chance--because our lives are not circular--of reeling around again." ( p. 131) And by the end, we see that linear life path may veer off in unexpected directions, but that often times there is the parallel jagged line next to it belonging to our best friend. By Tracey Henry

Book Review--"The Time Traveler's Wife"

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 19:50:17 CDT

The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger I had avoided this particular selection in my large bedside stack of books to read for months. Somehow, the title, The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger, conjured up a Jules Verne novel with lengthy, outdated prose that didn't pique my curiosity. However, when it became the lone tome on that nightstand, I was forced to pick it up. I was immediately sorry it had taken me so long to discover its richness. True, this is a novel about a time traveler; but not of some mad scientist with a fantastical time machine; but a contemporary one who experiences a genetic dysfunction which causes the phenomenon. The story addresses, but doesn't focus on the physical explanations of the condition; rather it tells the unique love story between Henry and Clare DeTamble. The summary of their present day meeting occurs when Clare is 20 and Henry is 28. He is a librarian for a large library in Chicago; she is an artist from a wealthy Michigan family. He is stricken by the grace and light of this beautiful stranger, but in truth, Clare has grown up with Henry as he has traveled through her childhood becoming a part of it. This travel has not occurred for age 28 Henry, so he is seemingly taken off guard when Clare begins to share intimacies with him. "I try to explain. 'I'm Clare Abshire. I knew you when I was a little girl' I 'm at a loss because I am in love with a man who is standing before me with no memories of me at all. Everything is in the future for him." (p.4) Confused? Of course and at times reading you will be as the story is narrated by both Henry and Clare as he drifts in and out of the present. However, it follows a basic logical chronology. Niffenegger does a commendable job of placing snippets of the past and future in just the right places for the reader to piece together without much confusion or effort. It was impressive that despite the circular motion of going back and forth through time, the story still progressed forward. The reader is privy to the couple's wedding, their careers, friendships, and their normal life struggles. Henry's time travel does not exempt them from human suffering, it merely futilely forewarns of its existence. This also introduces the moral issue of manipulating events to change the future, which is hit or miss for Henry, despite all of the moments when he wants to. The novel also addresses the loss of love with the same passion as being in it. While Henry has the unique benefit of reliving joyous moments, he also has the burden of replaying the heartbreaking ones. One of the only glimpses into the future he'll give Clare is this warning about grief, "After my mom died she ate up my father completely. She would have hated it. Every minute of his life since then has been marked by her absence, every action has lacked dimension because she is not there to measure against. And when I was young I didn't understand, but now, I know, how absence can be present, like a damaged nerve, like a dark bird." (p.520) Don't waste another moment before picking up this best-selling novel; it will be well-worth your time. By Tracey Henry

Book Review--"The History of Love"

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 19:46:58 CDT

In a review, I usually like to quote the inside of a book, but for Nicole Krauss', The History of Love, I need to begin by quoting author Elizabeth Berg�s assessment from the jacket. "[It] is such a unique and beautiful book, one I read with great pleasure quite literally from first sentence to the last. It is a mystery, a prose poem, a meditation, a single answer to many questions. It is the kind of book one hopes to find but rarely does: a work that captivates, challenges, and consoles, all at one." This novel is a challenge to adequately describe because the unique characters, fascinating plot and truly inspired writing are so inexorably linked; that the entire book reads like music where the lyrics and melody cannot be separated. So without giving away the chorus before the refrain, The History of Love, is about (the same-titled, but fictitous) an obscure novel that touched many lives with its straightforward beauty. It is not merely enough to say that this book moved or inspired its readers; it was the catalyst of powerful events that changed the courses of several strangers' lives that collide at the end into a beautiful chaos. Leo Gursky, a Polish immigrant living in New York 60 years after the Holocaust to which he lost most of his loved ones, begins the story with an honesty of voice that captivates the reader instantly. He starts by simply describing his simple life; but farther into the story, we begin to discover the depth of both his character and his life is far from simple. Krauss does a remarkable job of revealing his story word by word, so we are riveted at every sentence. And in a seemingly unrelated plotline, fourteen year old Alma describes growing up after the death of her father with her mother and brother. She is named after the woman who The History of Love was written for and to, and who inspired such amazing poetry as, "Her kiss was a question he wanted to spend his whole life answering." (p.62) The fascinating journey these two characters make--with ironic pit stops along the way--is not only entertaining, but perfectly believable as well. And in the fictitious The History of Love, the subject of love is addressed in such eloquent ways, that you wished the book did indeed exist in its entirety so that we all had a chance to receive its power. But the reader gets snippets of the History, and it reads like a textbook for the soul. The opening chapter is "The Age of Silence," and begins, "The first language humans had was gestures. There was nothing primitive about this language that flowed from people's hands�The habit of moving our hands while we speak is left over from it�.Holding hands, for example, is a way to remember how it feels to say nothing together. And at night, when it's too dark to see, we find it necessary to gesture on each other's bodies to make ourselves understood." (p.74) I apologize that I cannot reveal more of this novel, but any more description would be unwrapping a gift addressed to another. You will be hearing this title again in Pulitzer, Booker and Nobel whispers, and in this case, you will appreciate re-written history.

Book Review--"Decomposition"

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 19:40:33 CDT

In J. Eric Miller's dark tale, "Decomposition," he takes us on a journey running to and from something, but proving rather convincingly that the ultimate destination may be somewhere in the middle. Our unlikely heroine is a young woman who has just killed her boyfriend, although the specific circumstances surrounding the murder do not come to light until much later in the story. She is driving from New Orleans--fleeing a hurricane as well as the scene of the crime--to the lover she jilted in Seattle with Jack�s body in the trunk of her car. And while Seattle may be at the end of the journey, she reaches milestones well before she ever reaches George whom she supposes is waiting for her there. She begins her story with an explanation: "What's going on now, it's a love story, kind of. And in it, I'm my own hero. If there was a dragon, it was Jack, and I had to slay him myself and escape the cave in which he kept me. In this fairy tale, George is kind of like the sleeping beauty." (p.2) As you may infer from the title and subject matter, it is a dark story, sometimes violent and sexually explicit. But not gratuitously so, because sometimes life is just this raw, and Miller does a masterful job at presenting it intelligently and without apology. As Jack's body decomposes, so do many of her illusions of life; specifically her relationships between her parents, George, and, of course, Jack. But these metaphors and lessons come from an honest dialogue with herself that is sometimes shocking, sometimes humorous; but always captivating for the reader. And because she's her own hero re-writing fairy tales along this winding road, the villains are not always obvious, and happy endings are not always ensured. But she learns the important lessons albeit alarmingly and indirectly. "I don't need to thank anybody, but I say it anyway, Thank you, and I look at my own two eyes in the rearview mirror. A heat pulses through my stomach, the way I feel when I look at someone I think I love. So I love myself, that�s what I�ve learned, that�s the final epiphany I get from stopping home one last time." (p.68) This is a short read made shorter by its easy flow and for the fact that you won't be able to put it down. Perhaps in the end it is not a twisted modern fairy tale, but a ghost story because it will haunt you long after.