false 24 119 119 true 5977551 read 0 true 346809 currently-reading 0 true 346808 to-read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/79073003 to: The Lost Symbol (Robert Langdon, #3) by Dan Brown
It gets four stars because of how productive I became listening to it: doing laundry, dishes, painting, and sewing three pillows. In terms of the book itself, Brown is no wordsmith, but he tells a great story. As a Mormon I think the connections to the Masons are interesting and important to understand. A little heavy handed, but he's got me thinking about the power of the mind. I so did not see the suprsie coming. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/75963238 to: Twelfth Night (Folger Shakespeare Library) by William Shakespeare
That's for my experience reading it. On stage at least four stars. Viola is one of my favorite charcters in Shakespere. What is she doing in love with the spineless self-obsessed duke? My other new (plaigiarized) insight is that all of the characters represent an excess--excess of love, grief, drink, revelery. The twins as outsiders bring some balance. So what are the excesses in our culture? ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/76641179 Courtney's review of Speak
by Laurie Halse Anderson

I really liked this book--I think I read it in one sitting. I remember lots of my 9th grade students loved it. I agree, it captures something many young girls experience. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/18872099 to: Frankenstein (Enriched Classics) by Mary Shelley
"After some days spent in listless indolence . . . " (136) is pretty much how I felt reading Frankie this time around. I don't remember it being so tedious before. But maybe that's because I remembered its enduring themes, like the relationship between creator and creation, the implications of discovery, the hazards of circumventing women and motherhood in procreation. I liked Heather's insights about the relationship between technology and the monster. How often do our creations end up mastering us, such as how the world shuts down when the power goes out? I think this is also applicable to materialism--all the things we collect can pretty much bury us. And now Wade and I have a new flick to add to our must-watch list. But which version?! ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/73032793 to: Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions (Hardcover) by Dan Ariely
I love the whole idea of behavioral economics and what motivates our decisions. Ariely's thesis that "we are pawns in a game whose forces we largely fail to comprehend" but "once we understand when and where we may make erroneous decisions, we can try to be more vigilant" (243,244)seems so useful to me. This book is surprisingly fun to read with interesting examples and an engaging voice. I felt like it ran out of steam towards the end. Who knew you could learn so much about human behavior from studies involving chocolate and beer? ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/72718971 to: The Wednesday Wars (Hardcover) by Gary D. Schmidt
Why didn't I know about this book when I was teaching?! I'm making my little brother Robby read it. It's historical, fun to read, illuminating of Shakespeare, and well written to boot. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/62705853 to: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Paperback) by Jonathan Safran Foer
This is a hard one for me to rate... My experience reading the book was, like the book, disjointed, and maybe that interfered. I loved Oskar's character, enough to wonder if he's the post-9/11 Scout Finch (high praise indeed). The ending images are a powerful, painful statement of hope. I need to discuss this book with someone, and probably reread it, to make my peace with it. What, if anything, does it say about God? Is the book as atheistic as it purports to be? For Foer, are the human connections we're left with a replacement for faith, or are they what faith was all along? ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/62705814 to: A Thousand Splendid Suns (Hardcover) by Khaled Hosseini
I liked this even better than Kite Runner, maybe because it's about women. I get the impression that in addition to his themes of loyalty, family, and compassion, Hosseini is writing for an American audience to give them a view of Afghanistan that is bigger than 9/11. Then again, that goal would pretty much fit right into his themes . . . ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/60123032 to: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (Hardcover) by Mary Ann Shaffer
Let's just get this out there: lately (as in for about two years)I've been an ornery reader. And I liked this book because it cheered me up. It's meaningful and fun to read (gasp). One of the most meaningful parts for me is Eben's line from Shakespeare: "The bright day is done, and we are for the dark." I love what this book says about reading and its power to bring people together and through hard times. I was a little disappointed with the ending--I felt like the story turned into Isola's, and though she was one of my favorite characters I missed Juliet's voice. Still, it gets four stars because a book hasn't kept me up turning pages like that since Gone with the Wind. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/18872429 to: Holes (Paperback) by Louis Sachar
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