http://www.goodreads.com/review/list_rss/255612 en-US Fri, 08 Aug 2008 06:43:24 -0700 60 http://www.goodreads.com/ 200 41 http://www.goodreads.com/images/layout/gr_logo.gif 23130563 Fri, 08 Aug 2008 06:43:24 -0700
There is not a whole lot of information available to us about Jane Austen's life. Almost all of her letters, and the diaries we can assume she kept, were destroyed by her family. Thus, the author is working with a limited body of primary sources from which to draw. As a result, a lot of what is covered is either information about her siblings and extended family, or a laundry list of what happened on a particular day. For example, I just read a paragraph that listed out what the Austens did on Christmas Day 1814. As the author points out late in the book, most readers of Austen's work develop a picture of her based on her heroines, and there is not a lot in the book to either contradict this assumption or to support it.

Biographically, Tomalin does what she can with what she is able to get her hands on. Where she really shines, I think, is in the criticism of the works that is interspersed throughout latter 1/3 of the book.

Overall, I'd only pick this up if you are a mega Austen fan. As in, you've read all of the novels and at least a little bit of the Juvenilia.]]>
author: Claire Tomalin
name: Alison
average rating: 4.02
book published: 1999
rating: 2
read at: 08/08
date added: 08/08/08
shelves: nonfiction
review:
I'm almost done with this, and am writing this before I actually finish the book because the reason I am disappointed with it just hit me.

There is not a whole lot of information available to us about Jane Austen's life. Almost all of her letters, and the diaries we can assume she kept, were destroyed by her family. Thus, the author is working with a limited body of primary sources from which to draw. As a result, a lot of what is covered is either information about her siblings and extended family, or a laundry list of what happened on a particular day. For example, I just read a paragraph that listed out what the Austens did on Christmas Day 1814. As the author points out late in the book, most readers of Austen's work develop a picture of her based on her heroines, and there is not a lot in the book to either contradict this assumption or to support it.

Biographically, Tomalin does what she can with what she is able to get her hands on. Where she really shines, I think, is in the criticism of the works that is interspersed throughout latter 1/3 of the book.

Overall, I'd only pick this up if you are a mega Austen fan. As in, you've read all of the novels and at least a little bit of the Juvenilia.
]]> 27651564 Mon, 04 Aug 2008 17:44:45 -0700
In addition to the general info on container gardening, the authors have drawn up an extensive section with information that simply covers how to grow different types of veggies - all the basic info (varieties, sun/shade, how much water) etc, useful both if you are container gardening and if you just don't know anything about tomatoes.

It didn't take more than a quick perusal of this for me to decide to buy it. I'm looking forward to using it to plan out an expanded container garden next year (hopefully I will still have a space to do this!).]]>
author: Rose Marie Nichols McGee
name: Alison
average rating: 4.52
book published: 2002
rating: 4
read at: 07/08
date added: 08/04/08
shelves: craft-design, nonfiction, own_it
review:
This is a wonderful book that covers all the basics of container gardening. It includes some diagrams/instructions for large containers with multiple plantings, as well as information for how to grow a single type of plant by itself in a container.

In addition to the general info on container gardening, the authors have drawn up an extensive section with information that simply covers how to grow different types of veggies - all the basic info (varieties, sun/shade, how much water) etc, useful both if you are container gardening and if you just don't know anything about tomatoes.

It didn't take more than a quick perusal of this for me to decide to buy it. I'm looking forward to using it to plan out an expanded container garden next year (hopefully I will still have a space to do this!).
]]> 23640994 Thu, 31 Jul 2008 08:06:01 -0700
Now, the thing about this is that I still read it cover to cover, which took me about 45 minutes I think. So even if you're not sure you like it, you'll be too close to the end to stop by the time you figure it out. So, if you're at all interested or curious, you might as well pick this up.]]>
author: Maira Kalman
name: Alison
average rating: 4.43
book published: 2007
rating: 2
read at: 07/08
date added: 07/31/08
shelves: fiction
review:
I'm not sure where I spotted this that I put it on my list, but somehow this was not at all what I was expecting (not that I can tell you that, either). I think it was probably described as a year in the life of a quirky writer, and that's what it is. But it's the format that surprised me -- the format is kind of like a children's book. Every page is illustrated, and there is some text to go along with it. It does make a kind of interesting, piecemeal narrative, but it just didn't appeal to me all that much. I almost hate to say it, but I think part of it has to do with the illustrations -- some of them were really neat, but I am just not into that kind of thing enough to really spend the time pouring over the book. (I will be recommending this to someone who I think will really enjoy that aspect of it, though.)

Now, the thing about this is that I still read it cover to cover, which took me about 45 minutes I think. So even if you're not sure you like it, you'll be too close to the end to stop by the time you figure it out. So, if you're at all interested or curious, you might as well pick this up.
]]> 19929019 Thu, 31 Jul 2008 07:59:12 -0700
This book is essentially a collection of letters and journal entries written by women travelers. On the face of it that might not seem like any big thing, but this book is not focusing on you and me and our moms and aunts -- this is looking way back into the past, to Victorian era women and even before. These women were frequently striking out to places that no woman had been before, and that even no person had been to before in some cases. While that's not really a focus of the book, it was still incredibly interesting to read about how these women went to great lengths to do the traveling they wanted to do. Sometimes just the plain difficulty of getting around was amazing, and it was also wonderful to read about the interactions these women had withe the people they encountered. The women run the gamut from those who unwillingly went along with their husbands (missionaries or ambassadors) to those who took of because they wanted to and had the money, to those who took off the better to support themselves as nannies.

The ease of reading comes in with the setup of the book - the chapters are based on regions of the world, and then of course within that you have the various letters and journal entries. So not only is it easy to pick up and put down, but it's easy to dip in and out and just read snippets here and there.

If this sounds at all interesting, I definitely recommend it.]]>
author: Jane Robinson
name: Alison
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2001
rating: 4
read at: 07/08
date added: 07/31/08
shelves: nonfiction
review:
I really enjoyed this, even though at times it got a little bit tedious. The nice thing about that is that this book is extremely easy to pick up and put down, and to read simultaneously with something else, which is exactly what I did.

This book is essentially a collection of letters and journal entries written by women travelers. On the face of it that might not seem like any big thing, but this book is not focusing on you and me and our moms and aunts -- this is looking way back into the past, to Victorian era women and even before. These women were frequently striking out to places that no woman had been before, and that even no person had been to before in some cases. While that's not really a focus of the book, it was still incredibly interesting to read about how these women went to great lengths to do the traveling they wanted to do. Sometimes just the plain difficulty of getting around was amazing, and it was also wonderful to read about the interactions these women had withe the people they encountered. The women run the gamut from those who unwillingly went along with their husbands (missionaries or ambassadors) to those who took of because they wanted to and had the money, to those who took off the better to support themselves as nannies.

The ease of reading comes in with the setup of the book - the chapters are based on regions of the world, and then of course within that you have the various letters and journal entries. So not only is it easy to pick up and put down, but it's easy to dip in and out and just read snippets here and there.

If this sounds at all interesting, I definitely recommend it.
]]> 21652366 Thu, 31 Jul 2008 07:52:08 -0700
Maybe someday I will pick up the book, but we'll see.]]>
author: Alice Munro
name: Alison
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2004
rating: 2
read at: 05/08
date added: 07/31/08
shelves: audiobook, short-stories
review:
I finally gave up on this. I wasn't really enjoying it, and I can't tell you if it's the stories that I just didn't like, or if it was the narration that made me not like the stories. I felt then narrator just kept the same tone throughout -- not a monotone, but it didn't really draw me in. And I felt that the sound of her voice really highlighted how the women in these stories just seem to let things happen to them and don't really do anything about it. On the one hand, a lot of Joyce Carol Oates' work is like that, but this was missing whatever it is she adds that makes her work far more appealing to me.

Maybe someday I will pick up the book, but we'll see.
]]> 19929356 Fri, 18 Jul 2008 13:30:46 -0700
It was a quick & interesting read, but the internet chapter had me a little giggly since it was written in '99 and revised in'00.]]>
author: Paco Underhill
name: Alison
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2000
rating: 3
read at: 07/08
date added: 07/18/08
shelves: nonfiction
review:
This wasn't quite what I expected -- for some reason I thought it'd be about the psychology that drives us to buy things and how you can stop, but it's the opposite. The author basically does anthrolpologically-based work on determining why people buy things, and how you can get them to either buy more or have a happer experience in your store. Things like wider aisles, placement of shopping baskets, etc.

It was a quick & interesting read, but the internet chapter had me a little giggly since it was written in '99 and revised in'00.
]]> 23640939 Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:16:06 -0700
The premise of the book is that Earth has been taken over by an alien life form that inhabits the living bodies of the inhabitants of a variety of different planets. Their intent is to experience what it is like to be that species, and, on Earth at least, they clean up some of what they see of social & environmental problems. In any case, as with any good alien takeover of Earth, there are rebels. The story begins when a rebel, Melanie, is inhabited by one of the beings, with the goal being that Mel will then lead the aliens to other human rebels. It doesn't quite work out that way. What follows is a gripping and emotionally powerful (I cried, several times, very unusual for me with books) story that ends at exactly the right place.

For skeptics and those who don't consider themselves to be info SF, I still recommend that you pick this up. To me, the SF aspects were very naturally incorporated into the story, and if you can bring yourself to accept the world of the book -- which includes the existence of alien species both on Earth and elsewhere in the universe -- you'll be in for a wonderful treat. Don't let the heft of the hardcover edition keep you away -- you won't be able to put it down. I look forward to seeing what she comes out with next.]]>
author: Stephenie Meyer
name: Alison
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at: 06/08
date added: 07/01/08
shelves: fiction
review:
This book was incredibly compelling -- a wonderful story told in a wonderful way. Meyer is (apparently) the author of several SF books for the YA market, and this was her first foray into adult fiction. As far as I'm concerned, you'd never know.

The premise of the book is that Earth has been taken over by an alien life form that inhabits the living bodies of the inhabitants of a variety of different planets. Their intent is to experience what it is like to be that species, and, on Earth at least, they clean up some of what they see of social & environmental problems. In any case, as with any good alien takeover of Earth, there are rebels. The story begins when a rebel, Melanie, is inhabited by one of the beings, with the goal being that Mel will then lead the aliens to other human rebels. It doesn't quite work out that way. What follows is a gripping and emotionally powerful (I cried, several times, very unusual for me with books) story that ends at exactly the right place.

For skeptics and those who don't consider themselves to be info SF, I still recommend that you pick this up. To me, the SF aspects were very naturally incorporated into the story, and if you can bring yourself to accept the world of the book -- which includes the existence of alien species both on Earth and elsewhere in the universe -- you'll be in for a wonderful treat. Don't let the heft of the hardcover edition keep you away -- you won't be able to put it down. I look forward to seeing what she comes out with next.
]]> 24937240 Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:20:02 -0700
author: Dave Eggers
name: Alison
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2005
rating: 3
read at: 06/08
date added: 06/30/08
shelves: re-read, short-stories
review:

]]> 21651227 Mon, 23 Jun 2008 09:51:47 -0700
That said, these things are totally subjective -- Danielle gave this four stars. So if the plot appeals to you, give it a shot.]]>
author: Barbara Delinsky
name: Alison
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2008
rating: 1
read at: 06/08
date added: 06/23/08
shelves: fiction
review:
This wasn't bad per se, but I didn't particularly like it. The story was decent, but some of it was a bit too Lifetime-movie-esque for me. Does the protagonist really have to fall in love with the brother of the man she & her daughter ran over? Is it really necessary for her son to have this terrible medical problem? And how many are the characters going to have the same arguments with each other? Sometimes in these cases the writing can make up for a kind of blah plot, but I didn't think that was the case here.

That said, these things are totally subjective -- Danielle gave this four stars. So if the plot appeals to you, give it a shot.
]]> 4126228 Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:19:26 -0700
author: Dave Eggers
name: Alison
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2000
rating: 4
read at: 06/08
date added: 06/16/08
shelves: fiction, re-read
review:
Hilarious, and extremely compelling. Read it if you haven't.
]]> 21652238 Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:18:28 -0700
The story basically chronicles the disintegration of a family after their daughter commits a terrorist act in their tiny hometown. We spend much of the novel coming at things from the point of view of the father, who is increasingly unable to understand how things have gotten to where they are.

I'm not really sure what else to say about this -- but it was great. I'm sure I'll come back to it again someday.]]>
author: Philip Roth
name: Alison
average rating: 3.92
book published: 1997
rating: 4
read at: 06/08
date added: 06/16/08
shelves: fiction
review:
So, this was excellent. At times I didn't devote the attention that it deserved, but even so it was a wonderful story -- and the writing was amazing. (The man wrote a sentence that went on for 2/3 of a page, and it made perfect sense!)

The story basically chronicles the disintegration of a family after their daughter commits a terrorist act in their tiny hometown. We spend much of the novel coming at things from the point of view of the father, who is increasingly unable to understand how things have gotten to where they are.

I'm not really sure what else to say about this -- but it was great. I'm sure I'll come back to it again someday.
]]> 23846027 Fri, 06 Jun 2008 07:20:21 -0700
Anyway, this is a perennial favorite of mine, and it gets better every time I read it. There's always something new that I wonder about -- in this case, I started to wonder about some of the vocabulary he uses. I always just assumed that a lot of the words were made up. But I just looked up "viviparous" and it's an actual word. So next time I read this, I think I'll read it with a dictionary at hand. Through the context you get the meaning, but it's still interesting to me.]]>
author: Harold Bloom
name: Alison
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at: 06/08
date added: 06/06/08
shelves: fiction, re-read
review:
I didn't read this particular edition -- I have an old, used book store edition that I got as a gift from my high school English teacher senior year.

Anyway, this is a perennial favorite of mine, and it gets better every time I read it. There's always something new that I wonder about -- in this case, I started to wonder about some of the vocabulary he uses. I always just assumed that a lot of the words were made up. But I just looked up "viviparous" and it's an actual word. So next time I read this, I think I'll read it with a dictionary at hand. Through the context you get the meaning, but it's still interesting to me.
]]> 23130613 Wed, 28 May 2008 10:13:40 -0700
author: Gayla Trail
name: Alison
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2005
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 05/28/08
shelves:
review:

]]> 13523108 Tue, 27 May 2008 08:38:39 -0700
I really liked the story, but was sometimes annoyed by how naive the protagonist is -- but that just served to remind the reader that she's an 18-year-old from Tasmania, who has really never been exposed to the world. So while that was at times frustrating, I think it worked well -- it kept things more interesting. And really, half the story wouldn't have occurred if she was more mature and sophisticated when the story occurs.

Overall, an interesting read -- especially for anyone in the book world. And it's a fast-moving story, too; I finished it in a day.]]>
author: Sheridan Hay
name: Alison
average rating: 3.11
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 05/08
date added: 05/27/08
shelves: fiction
review:
I read this in a day -- it's a nice little story about a young woman who moves to NYC and finds work in a used bookstore. She promptly gets talked into helping the manager with a clandestine purchase, and manages to share bits & pieces of the information with various members of the staff.

I really liked the story, but was sometimes annoyed by how naive the protagonist is -- but that just served to remind the reader that she's an 18-year-old from Tasmania, who has really never been exposed to the world. So while that was at times frustrating, I think it worked well -- it kept things more interesting. And really, half the story wouldn't have occurred if she was more mature and sophisticated when the story occurs.

Overall, an interesting read -- especially for anyone in the book world. And it's a fast-moving story, too; I finished it in a day.
]]> 22740841 Tue, 27 May 2008 08:33:08 -0700
I think that the plot itself would have made a wonderful novella or short story -- there was enough going on that you'd have characters that were fully-developed enough for that purpose, but to my mind there wasn't enough development for a novel-length work (some of the room given to the narrator going on about how he couldn't write would have been put to better use if it was used for character development).

I read the original version of this, not the Modern Library re-release (Oates has gone through those and edited her young self). I can't help but wonder if my dislike of this book is because she wrote it so early in her career, before she really found her voice and her style. Who knows. If I liked it a little bit more I might immediately read the Modern Library re-release . . . but I don't, so there will be no comparison.]]>
author: Joyce Carol Oates
name: Alison
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2006
rating: 2
read at: 05/08
date added: 05/27/08
shelves: fiction
review:
I think this was the first Oates novel that I've read and haven't liked all that much -- mainly because of the narrator. I'm not a huge fan of things written from the viewpoint of an unreliable narrator, and so that was one of the problems. Another thing that bothered me was the narrator's constant references to the fact that he was writing the account -- even going to far as to frequently talk about how poorly written it was, and how many digressions there were, and how the last three chapters really could have been cut out, etc. There was just too much of it, and it was too pathetic and ingratiating for my taste. (Normally the self-referential narrator doesn't bother me, but I don't think I've encountered it being done so heavily before.)

I think that the plot itself would have made a wonderful novella or short story -- there was enough going on that you'd have characters that were fully-developed enough for that purpose, but to my mind there wasn't enough development for a novel-length work (some of the room given to the narrator going on about how he couldn't write would have been put to better use if it was used for character development).

I read the original version of this, not the Modern Library re-release (Oates has gone through those and edited her young self). I can't help but wonder if my dislike of this book is because she wrote it so early in her career, before she really found her voice and her style. Who knows. If I liked it a little bit more I might immediately read the Modern Library re-release . . . but I don't, so there will be no comparison.
]]> 13523469 Thu, 22 May 2008 06:18:12 -0700
author: Janet Mullany
name: Alison
average rating: 3.36
book published: 2007
rating: 2
read at: 05/08
date added: 05/22/08
shelves: fiction
review:
This was a nice read, but I thought that the characters could have used a bit more depth. There wasn't really much to it, which is unfortunate because the main focus (19th century women forging their own paths, social norms and expectations be damned) lost some of its power due to the weak characters.
]]> 14055372 Thu, 22 May 2008 06:11:49 -0700
author: Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan
name: Alison
average rating: 3.18
book published: 2007
rating: 2
read at: 05/08
date added: 05/22/08
shelves: cookbooks
review:
This was OK. Lots of yummy looking recipies -- especially cakes and tarts. But I don't (currently) bake cakes and tarts. So of what was left, there wasn't really anything that I felt I didn't have covered in my existing cookbooks/recipe stash. But it was nice to page through, so if you like to bake I'd grab it from the library.
]]> 21651426 Fri, 09 May 2008 12:47:40 -0700
Some I liked more than others, but that's par for the course with this type of anthology. I will say that at the end of the last story the main character was made out to be rather despicable, and so that has left me with an 'ugh' feeling. But I do know that I liked some of the other stories, so I would recommend this if you like short fiction.]]>
author: Natalie Danford
name: Alison
average rating: 3.47
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 05/08
date added: 05/09/08
shelves: short-stories
review:
I enjoyed reading these stories, which were all over the map -- some deeply strange, and some more based in reality. It's always interesting to me to read short fiction by previously unpublished authors, and especially in this case, where the stories are coming straight out of MFA programs and writing workshops. Given my own tendency to write thinly-disguised fiction about myself when I was writing in college, I couldn't help but wonder with some of these stories if there weren't some seeds of autobiography in them.

Some I liked more than others, but that's par for the course with this type of anthology. I will say that at the end of the last story the main character was made out to be rather despicable, and so that has left me with an 'ugh' feeling. But I do know that I liked some of the other stories, so I would recommend this if you like short fiction.
]]> 12837076 Mon, 05 May 2008 13:17:55 -0700
I came back to this little "review" because I know it really doesn't tell you anything, but I really don't have anything more to say. I guess essentially this was an enjoyable enough read, but nothing remarkable.]]>
author: James Collins
name: Alison
average rating: 3.40
book published: 2008
rating: 3
read at: 04/08
date added: 05/05/08
shelves: fiction
review:
This was pretty good -- kind of a modern take on an Austenian love story. Quick read, and I enjoyed it well enough, though there were certainly some parts that were a little pat.

I came back to this little "review" because I know it really doesn't tell you anything, but I really don't have anything more to say. I guess essentially this was an enjoyable enough read, but nothing remarkable.
]]> 18004723 Mon, 05 May 2008 13:16:31 -0700
author: Cate Kennedy
name: Alison
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2008
rating: 3
read at: 05/08
date added: 05/05/08
shelves: fiction, short-stories
review:
An interesting collection of Australian short stories -- the tone ties them together somewhat, and in all or most of them the theme (dark roots) is apparent. I enjoyed them, though I have to say a knowledge of Aussie slang would have definitely helped. (That said, this wasn't nearly as bad as my experience with the Yiddish Policemen's Union.)
]]> 18004555 Mon, 05 May 2008 13:14:37 -0700
author: Susan Fraser King
name: Alison
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2008
rating: 4
read at: 05/08
date added: 05/05/08
shelves: fiction
review:
I picked this up because I enjoy historical fiction, and this was pretty good. It traces the life of Lady MacBeth, from when she is about 13 or so until just after MacBeth's death. I love seeing the intersections of history & literature, and this provided exactly this example. There's not a whole lot known about Lady MacBeth, and so the scholar had to go on what she could find and expand on that given what we know about the time. There's not really anything that ties this directly to the tale we know from Shakespeare, but there are some interesting parallels, and you can see how he might have worked off of legends or stories of the pair.
]]> 4127624 Mon, 05 May 2008 13:11:15 -0700
If anyone wants to borrow this let me know, it's kind of neat.]]>
author: Jordan Weisman
name: Alison
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2006
rating: 3
read at: 04/08
date added: 05/05/08
shelves: fiction
review:
I picked this up at the Mass Library Association 2007 Conference, after hearing the author speak about it. It's an interesting story, and I think if you actually did what you were supposed to -- call the phone numbers in the book, visit the websites & explore them, really examine the ephemera included -- it'd be super fun. But I just wasn't motivated to do that alone.

If anyone wants to borrow this let me know, it's kind of neat.
]]> 18930937 Sat, 26 Apr 2008 07:28:17 -0700
author: Nancy Pearl
name: Alison
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2003
rating: 3
read at: 04/08
date added: 04/26/08
shelves: nonfiction
review:
I skimmed through this mainly to find more books to add to my list. I have to say I was disappointed that there wasn't more about why she liked some of the books -- in some cases, you were really just reading a glorified list of titles & names. But, I got a lot of titles out of it anyway.
]]> 19929962 Sat, 26 Apr 2008 07:27:12 -0700
author: Jeffrey D. Sachs
name: Alison
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2005
rating: 2
read at: 04/08
date added: 04/26/08
shelves: nonfiction
review:
I feel like I should have liked & understood this a lot more (liberal guilt? who knows). The stories of how people in poor countries are trying to give themselves a lift up were interesting and engaging, but I skimmed or skipped the economic theory explaining why it worked. I didn't really understand it (never took econ).
]]> 13523642 Thu, 17 Apr 2008 13:28:41 -0700
author: Shannon Hale
name: Alison
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at: 04/08
date added: 04/17/08
shelves: fiction
review:
Short and sweet. I read this in one sitting - it's a fun story for those who are into Austen; I guess you could say it's chick lit. Nothing earth-shattering, but overall I enjoyed it.
]]> 13525244 Tue, 08 Apr 2008 12:46:18 -0700
But if you like stuff that's over the top, you'll probably like this -- it's just not my thing.]]>
author: Woody Allen
name: Alison
average rating: 3.15
book published: 2007
rating: 1
read at: 04/08
date added: 04/08/08
shelves: short-stories
review:
I didn't really like this collection of stories. Overall I felt they were very similar -- the pacing was mostly the same (frantic), and they all had the exact same aura of oddball ridiculousness. Lots of show-biz patter from the characters, and every single one had some preposterous name. The ridiculous was laid on too thick for my taste, and that meant that some truly funny lines just didn't shine because they were surrounded by so much nonsense.

But if you like stuff that's over the top, you'll probably like this -- it's just not my thing.
]]> 17517440 Thu, 03 Apr 2008 09:34:07 -0700
It's the kind of thing I might pick up again if I wind up doing some specific project that's covered in the book -- branding for an organization, creating a newsletter.

The cool thing about this is the projects/chapters were all put together by students at a local art school -- I thought that was a really neat collaboration.]]>
author: Ellen Lupton
name: Alison
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2006
rating: 3
read at: 04/08
date added: 04/03/08
shelves: craft-design
review:
This was interesting -- it's not quite a craft book, and not quite a design book, though there are elements of both. There are projects you can make (but without super detailed instructions) there is information on a variety of design principles (layout, branding) and there are tons of ideas to steal and repurpose.

It's the kind of thing I might pick up again if I wind up doing some specific project that's covered in the book -- branding for an organization, creating a newsletter.

The cool thing about this is the projects/chapters were all put together by students at a local art school -- I thought that was a really neat collaboration.
]]> 13523002 Thu, 03 Apr 2008 09:31:01 -0700
I really enjoyed this -- set in 1700s London, it follows the story of a family that moves to London from the countryside, and then back to the countryside. They take rooms next door to one William Blake, and their son (and a girl he meets in London) wind up befriending him. I love things like this where someone takes the time to learn about an actual historical figure, and the times in which he or she lived, and then takes that information and weaves a story around it. This story pulled me along quickly, and I thought was interesting -- Blake isn't the focus in the way you might expect - he's one of several wonderful characters who play a supporting role to the two kids mentioned above.

My one thing about this book is that there's a part of the ending that makes me skeptical, but without an indepth knowledge of the social norms of the English countryside at the time, I'm not focusing on it.]]>
author: Tracy Chevalier
name: Alison
average rating: 3.16
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 04/08
date added: 04/03/08
shelves: fiction
review:
The best part about having a totally random list of books to read is that sometimes when I pick one of them up, I have forgotten what the topic is and even why I added it to my list.

I really enjoyed this -- set in 1700s London, it follows the story of a family that moves to London from the countryside, and then back to the countryside. They take rooms next door to one William Blake, and their son (and a girl he meets in London) wind up befriending him. I love things like this where someone takes the time to learn about an actual historical figure, and the times in which he or she lived, and then takes that information and weaves a story around it. This story pulled me along quickly, and I thought was interesting -- Blake isn't the focus in the way you might expect - he's one of several wonderful characters who play a supporting role to the two kids mentioned above.

My one thing about this book is that there's a part of the ending that makes me skeptical, but without an indepth knowledge of the social norms of the English countryside at the time, I'm not focusing on it.
]]> 13523367 Tue, 01 Apr 2008 09:43:45 -0700
The topic isn't something that normally would have caught my eye -- we follow the title character from Spain to Chile, and learn about the travails of settling the new country in the face of opposition from the natives. We also hear the stories of her three husbands/lovers, which involves both the lovey-dovey part and some stories of battles in which they engaged -- the latter were actually some of the best stories-within-a-story that I've read recently.

The audiobook is long, but I found it easy to keep up with the story even if I hadn't listened in a few days.

]]>
author: Isabel Allende
name: Alison
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at: 04/08
date added: 04/01/08
shelves: audiobook, fiction
review:
I finally finished listening to this today, and I have to say I really enjoyed it. I picked this up because LJ had a review that specifically recommended the audiobook, and I'm glad that I went for the audiobook, and not the regular book. I don't think I would have liked it as much otherwise. I say that because the narrator's accent and pronunciation made it that much easier to fall into the story, which is set primarily in Chile in the 1500s. (Sometimes when I am presented with words or names in another language, I continually wonder in the back of my head if I am pronouncing them right as I read to myself -- a little distracting.) The pacing was beautiful and the narrator's inflection was wonderful.

The topic isn't something that normally would have caught my eye -- we follow the title character from Spain to Chile, and learn about the travails of settling the new country in the face of opposition from the natives. We also hear the stories of her three husbands/lovers, which involves both the lovey-dovey part and some stories of battles in which they engaged -- the latter were actually some of the best stories-within-a-story that I've read recently.

The audiobook is long, but I found it easy to keep up with the story even if I hadn't listened in a few days.


]]> 14666040 Tue, 01 Apr 2008 09:35:56 -0700
]]>
author: John Klima
name: Alison
average rating: 3.17
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 03/08
date added: 04/01/08
shelves: short-stories
review:
I enjoyed this a lot. The premise is very cool - each story was inspired by a word that was the winning word in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in recent years. I don't know if it was because of the oddness of the words, or if it's just the types of things these authors write, but the stories were really strange and wonderful -- exactly what I like to see in short stories. The kind of thing where sometimes you're not sure if you know what's going on, and you have to piece it together as you read. Some were funny, some were disturbing, some were just plain odd. Some were a little bit sci-fi, some were completely based in the reality we know, some were somewhere in between. I liked them all, and if you like short stories (or weird stories) I highly recommend this.


]]> 18930893 Sat, 29 Mar 2008 12:37:54 -0700
author: Steven Hall
name: Alison
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 04/08
date added: 03/29/08
shelves: fiction
review:

]]> 13525190 Sat, 29 Mar 2008 12:36:37 -0700
author: Austin Grossman
name: Alison
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 03/08
date added: 03/29/08
shelves: fiction
review:
This was awesome! Totally entertaining, funny and I really liked the characters. Basically this book takes a look at the lives of superheroes, but in a way that highlights the ordinariness of their lives. Who's divorced from who, group politics of the superhero hero's group, insecurities of the supervillian, etc. I really enjoyed this and highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys quirkiness and nerds.
]]> 14664922 Sat, 29 Mar 2008 12:34:33 -0700
author: Giada De Laurentiis
name: Alison
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 03/08
date added: 03/29/08
shelves: cookbooks
review:
Another great Giada cookbook. I eat lots of pasta, so this was a great book to get some new ideas. I will be adding this to my "do want" cookbook list.
]]> 18555108 Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:57:51 -0700
author: Azar Nafisi
name: Alison
average rating: 3.19
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 03/24/08
shelves: nonfiction
review:

]]> 13526854 Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:56:28 -0700
I did photocopy the chapter on growing herbs in a window box and will try it out in the next few weeks.]]>
author: Ellen Zachos
name: Alison
average rating: 3.00
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at: 03/08
date added: 03/24/08
shelves: craft-design
review:
This was a pretty cool introduction to gardening with some neat tips and projects. For some reason I was expecting it to be more along the lines of fun stuff to do with houseplants and other small outdoor projects, but this was mostly geared toward folks with a fair amount of outdoor space. There are some small-space projects, but even most of those were too big for my little landing.

I did photocopy the chapter on growing herbs in a window box and will try it out in the next few weeks.
]]> 13522911 Mon, 24 Mar 2008 18:54:08 -0700
author: Don DeLillo
name: Alison
average rating: 3.13
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 03/08
date added: 03/24/08
shelves: fiction
review:
This novel takes a small bite out of the lives of a few New York City natives in the immediate aftermath of 9/11. I wouldn't say there's a story, per se, but it's an interesting character study. I think that DeLillo handles talking about 9/11 in a very matter-of-fact way that I thought was just right (that said, I was not directly affected by the attacks). Anyway, I don't have much to say about it, but don't let that stop you from picking it up.
]]> 16323781 Tue, 11 Mar 2008 08:44:26 -0700
author: Michael Chabon
name: Alison
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2008
rating: 2
read at: 03/08
date added: 03/11/08
shelves: fiction
review:
This was okay. I liked the story, but for me, the language got in the way -- there's a lot of Yiddish. Not so much that I couldn't follow along, but enough that I felt I was missing something, whether it was another shade of meaning or a funny/ironic use of a word. For example, I just Googled "shoyfer," the word used in place of cell phone. It roughly means "ritual ram's horn," so there is clearly some joke or tease being made in the use of that word. I'm not one to sit with a dictionary or with Google and look up every other word, so I'm sure I missed a lot. And since I don't know much about Judaism, I know I missed some references. Overall, I think the book would have been pretty funny if I knew Yiddish.
]]> 14914369 Sat, 01 Mar 2008 09:37:38 -0800
author: Anchee Min
name: Alison
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2001
rating: 3
read at: 02/08
date added: 03/01/08
shelves: fiction
review:
It took me a little while to get into this, but ultimately I enjoyed it. It was an interesting, fictionalized, look at a piece of history that I know nothing about. Madame Mao herself gets swept up in the role she feels she must play, and ultimately causes her own downfall. This makes me want to learn more about the time period, so if anyone has suggestions for something that's not too dry, I'd love to hear them.
]]> 12604175 Mon, 25 Feb 2008 10:08:18 -0800
Overall, some good ideas.]]>
author: Joe Dominguez
name: Alison
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1999
rating: 3
read at: 02/08
date added: 02/25/08
shelves: nonfiction
review:
This was interesting, if a little new-agey at times. (It originally came out in the '70s, I believe, and was updated in the mid-90s.) Basically it's a nine-step plan to early retirement, based on determining your optimal comfort level in life, and what sort of income is required to sustain that. I don't currently have any plans to follow the entire program, but I did think that the sections where they talked about determining the real value of something you buy -- both in terms of how many hours you had to work to afford it, as well as in terms of how much enjoyment you'll get out of it. There's also an interesting visual method for charting income and expenses that I might adopt. We'll see.

Overall, some good ideas.
]]> 15687093 Thu, 21 Feb 2008 14:28:08 -0800
author: Philippa Gregory
name: Alison
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at: 02/08
date added: 02/21/08
shelves: fiction
review:
I really enjoy Phillipa Gregory's Tudor period fiction, and this was no exception. This book weaves together the stories of three wo