]]>
]]>
]]>
bookshelves: historical
I was mildly disappointed in this book, although I did finish it. The historical truths are there and those are interesting. But, unfortunately, I found the book to drag on and on. The same stories were told through three views, which made it move slowly. I also didn't find any of the characters particularly likeable. Normally, Gregory makes me take sides - but not with this book. I found all three authors rather annoying and unlikeable for different reasons. This made it harder to care about them or what happened. I was particularly annoyed with the Queen of Scots, who I hoped I would love and root for. Instead, she was shown to be a selfish, in-the-clouds whiner with no real concept of the real world.
While there are interesting parts, this is not nearly the best of Gregory's - I would give that honor to the Queen's Fool. ]]>
Kim
said "yes" to attending the event: June Book Club.
date: June 29, 2009 06:00PM
location: RIBCO, Rock Island, IL, The United States
description: Whether we read it or not...
]]>
bookshelves: work-related
]]>
bookshelves: gardening
This is, by far, the best vegetable gardening book I have read.
You hear a lot about square foot gardening, but Bartholomew really details every step to make your garden successful. The book is knowledgeable and detailed, but also an easy read. I also found that this book is very easily browsible and searchable, which is a plus for a gardening book.
I was easily sold on square foot gardening:
1. We don't have an excess of space. With square foot gardening, you can have plenty of food for two people with two 4x4 plots.
2. There are only two of us in our household, so we don't want an overabundance of produce that goes to waste. Rows of carrots that will be harvested at the same time would be a waste.
3. The set-up of square foot gardens make them easier to manage (weed, water, etc.) It also makes it easy to rotate crops in future years.
4. I prefer the look of the square foot gardening over rows of traditional gardening.
The chapters are set up logically, from planning to the different steps of preparing soil and planting to a dictionary of common vegetables and herbs. It is a great reference text for planting common vegetables and gardens. For a beginner, this book is a must. It made it incredibly easy to layout our garden in a spreadsheet for reference. It also goes into detail about how to plant more than one crop throughout the season. So, you really can get the most out of the land you have.
The only drawback to this book that I noticed is that the author mainly discusses common produce (tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, cucumbers, beans, etc.) If you are looking to do a special variety or something different, it may not be included. A larger plant encyclopedia is probably the way to go. But, if you are looking to garden smarter, this is the book for you. ]]>
bookshelves: book-club-to-read, chicklit
This is a really fun read. It's quick and fresh. The fact that it's true really kept me reading. It just seemed too much like fantasy. The people she met and the experiences she had are truly amazing. And, her background is just a riot. It's such a contrast that made for a great read.
The author is endearing, she's funny and lighthearted about her royal obsession. Even though she seriously wants it, I appreciate that she didn't take herself too seriously.
I had to respect Fine for really following her dreams - even when it took her across the ocean into the U.K. And, even when nothing... really nothing... was going her way, she still stuck with it.
I especially enjoyed that part where she found out about her past lives. This really connected things for me, and it seemed to make total sense. It was really really interesting.
I would love to read more about how she met her current beau, the small part about meeting him just wasn't enough for me. How did they meet? What does he think about her love for Phillip? Does she still talk about royalty often? I hope she writes again soon. I would definitely be waiting to read it. =) ]]>
bookshelves: money
I'm going to be honest, I was expecting more. I give it a four because the information is good. But, it reads like an informercial. Which, is kind of odd because he puts down a lot of the get-rich-quick schemes, but seems to model his book off of these.
While it was interesting to read about some of the folks that have gone through the Money Makeover, it got really repetitive. All of his pull-out points were also repeats. Some of the same points were mentioned three different times in the book. It was like he was teaching a three-year old. Disappointing.
However, while I don't give the actual writing high marks, the topic and actual plan is good. Fortunately, we are not in consumer debt, so most of the information about the "Debt Snowball" was not applicable (thank goodness). However, the information about creating an emergency plan and retirement savings was helpful and will translate into our own budgeting.
I would have loved more information about the actual process of budgeting that he recommended. I'm sure another of his books will go over this more, since it was very glossed over in this book.
All-in-all, great points but disappointing read. ]]>