Jennifer's profile

86 ratings | 59 reviews
avg rating: 3.77

Jennifer's bookshelves

read (91)
currently-reading (1)

to-read (77)
gave-up (4)

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Jennifer is currently reading

	08/18 Jennifer is currently reading: The Dangerous Days of Daniel X (Hardcover) by James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge bookshelves: currently-reading	my rating:
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Jennifer's recent updates (rss)

August 19

Jennifer marked as to-read:
The 19th Wife: A Novel (Hardcover)
by David Ebershoff
bookshelves: to-read

my rating:

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Jennifer marked as to-read:
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle: A Novel (Hardcover)
by David Wroblewski
bookshelves: to-read

my rating:

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Jennifer made a comment in the group 50 Books 2008—Jennifer's 50 book list topic:

Jennifer wrote: "19. The Cat Who Tailed a Thief by Lillian Jackson Braun
I listened to this in my car and it was the ...more "

August 18

Jennifer marked as to-read:
Tethered: A Novel (Hardcover)
by Amy MacKinnon (Goodreads author!)
bookshelves: to-read

my rating:

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Jennifer gave

to:
All the Way Home: Building a Family in a Falling-Down House (Hardcover)
by David Giffels

my rating:

recommended for: People who have worked on a home renovation
read in August, 2008

Jennifer said: "I totally loved this book. I felt like the author had peered into my life and then wrote a fictionalized account of it for his book. Funny then that the book is a non-fiction account of the author's own life. To be quite honest, I think I was in the ...more "

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August 15

Jennifer marked as to-read:
Something Borrowed (Paperback)
by Emily Giffin
bookshelves: to-read

my rating:

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Jennifer gave

to:
Of Mice and Men (Centennial Edition)
by John Steinbeck

my rating:

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Jennifer gave

to:
The Secret Life of Bees (Paperback)
by Sue Monk Kidd

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Jennifer read and liked Nola's review of The Memory Keeper's Daughter:

" Some moments in our lives are crossroads, moments where the course of our lives is shaped. Sometimes the deviation is minor, and sometimes it is life-altering. Such are the forces that form the first chapter of Kim Edwards’ novel, The Memory Keepe...more Some moments in our lives are crossroads, moments where the course of our lives is shaped. Sometimes the deviation is minor, and sometimes it is life-altering. Such are the forces that form the first chapter of Kim Edwards’ novel, The Memory Keeper’s Daughter.

A dreadful snowstorm forces Dr. David Henry to deliver his first child, which to his surprise turns out to be twins. The first is a perfect son, ideal in all ways. But the second child has Down’s syndrome. In a moment that changed and defined the life of all five people in the room – the twins, the parents, and the nurse – Dr. Henry requests that his nurse take the girl to a home for the mentally retarded. Instead, she takes the child away and raises her as her own. The mother is told only that her daughter was stillborn.

Edwards traces the lives of the two families over the next twenty-five years. Dr. Henry sought to shelter his wife and son from grief, but his deep, dark secret winds up alienating him from his family, and the pain he caused may well exceed what they would have otherwise have suffered. His monumentous deception creates a wall upon which other lies are built. As he draws away from his wife, she draws away from him. Their deceptions impact their son, who begins erecting his own walls.

Part of David’s withdrawl is accentuated by the gift of a camera that enables him to remove himself from his family’s life. Even when he is present for events and activities, he isolates himself behind the lens. Only years later does he come to realize that much of his life was spent in observation rather than active participation.

Meanwhile, as Caroline raises the unwanted child, her perspective completely changes. Instead of waiting to be loved, she learns to find fulfillment in loving. After several years, she recognizes that she was not a passive victim but an active accomplice in the deception.

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter is a tale of deception and treachery, but it is also a story of walls and barriers. Over and over again, David had the opportunity and even the desire to confess and come clean, and yet he never does. Instead, he remains silent, and his silence is frequently misinterpreted, driving another wedge between himself and those he loves. Although few of us deceive to such magnitude, the story manages to illustrate the price of deception of all sizes. Edwards has managed to weave a convincing story of tragedy, fully drawing the reader into her tale.
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August 11

Jennifer made a comment in the group 50 Books 2008—Question #10: A Sticky Situation topic:

Jennifer wrote: "I would pick Alex Cross from the James Patterson mystery series. All sorts of bad stuff has happened...more "

see all 91 of Jennifer's books »

Jennifer's favorite quotes

"I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book."
— Groucho Marx

tags: books, humor, reading, television

562 people liked it

"If you're going to tell the truth, you better make them laugh; otherwise they'll kill you."
— George Bernard Shaw

3 people liked it

"I don't believe in art. I believe in artists."
— Marcel Duchamp

tags: art, artists

2 people liked it

Jennifer's groups (recent posts)

50 Books 2008 — 604 members — last activity 14 minutes ago
This group is for people who want to be challenged in 2008 by reading 50 books.

Start the challenge by creating a post with the title of your chal...more

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Jennifer's friends (22)

	Bronwen 82 books, 35 friends Friend details Worked Together
	Laurel 335 books 16 friends
	Dawn 62 books, 18 friends Friend details Family "Jennifer reads more than anyone I know, including me! "
	Kevin 81 books, 9 friends Friend details We hooked up, We dated, Fate brought us together, Lived together, College or University, Family "Jenny is my lovely wife, and she reads more (and faster) than anyone I know."
	Erin 116 books 7 friends
	laura 61 books 16 friends
	Meg 79 books 5 friends
	Leah 39 books 4 friends
	Peter 91 books 6 friends
	Michelle 19 books 2 friends
	Victoria 15 books 2 friends
	Jessica 24 books 5 friends
	Brian 10 books 8 friends
	Kindree 6 books 5 friends
	Austin 120 books 93 friends

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