Almost Dead by Lisa Jackson

Almost Dead by Lisa Jackson

From the back cover:
Cissy Cahill's world is unraveling fast. One by one, members of her family are dying. Cissy's certain she's being watched. Or is she losing her mind? Lately she's heard footsteps when there's no one around, smelled a woman's perfume, and noticed small, personal items missing from her house. Cissy's right to be afraid--but not for the reason she thinks. The truth is much more terrifying...

I just finished not finishing this book. Let me say it this way: it took me six weeks to read up to the halfway point in the book and it took me less than five minutes to skim the rest of the book and not miss anything that happened.

The storyline was bad and the characters were worse. The story would have been a great one if it were told with some imagination. But instead, the author used amateur tricks to wrap up the story. Instead of keeping the reader on the edge of their seats with a creative and suspenseful plot, we are lied to because the villain gives her sidekick a nickname that is also the name of one of the main characters. LAME! And who the killer turns out to be is also a cop-out to creatively coming up with a great storyline because it's not believable. I hate a good story with a cop-out ending. And the characters are annoying and also not believable. I could care less about any of them. The main character Cissy, was so stupid and whiny that I wished the murderer would hurry up and off her. But she suffers on through most of the book.

I almost never quit a book in the middle. It has to be really bad for me to not read it to the end. Oh yeah, did I mention the repetition? The author repeats herself over and over again. Did this book have an editor? Also, much of this book reads like a romance novel, which I find intolerable. This was (almost) my first and definitely my last Lisa Jackson book.

Laura's Rating: 2/5

Did you read this book and you agree with my review? Or did you love it and you think I'm nuts? Tell me about it in the comments!


Later this week I'll be posting a "good" book review. Stay tuned.

Best Books of 2007?

The New York Times has published a list of the ten best books in 2007. The first five are fiction and the last five are non-fiction. I don't know who wrote the article or who got to determine which books were this year's best, but if you can recommend any from this list, let me know in the comments! The fiction books look more interesting to me, but still...were any of these on Border's recommended reading lists? Or Oprah's? Hah, I'm kidding. Kind of.

Here's the list:

1. Man Gone Down by Michael Thomas
2. Out Stealing Horses by Per Petterson
3. The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolano
4. Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris
5. Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson
6. Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq's Green Zone by Rajiv Chandrasekaran
7. Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression by Mildred Armstrong Kalish
8. The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court by Jeffery Toobin
9. The Ordeal of Elizabeth Marsh: A Woman in World History by Linda Colley
10. The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century by Alex Ross

Link

J.K. Rowling is Named Entertainer of the Year

Entertainment Weekly magazine has named J.K. Rowling entertainer of the year. Rowling published the final book in her Harry Potter series this past July. Here's what the magazine had to say:

So we'll keep it simple: J.K. Rowling is our Entertainer of the Year because she did something very, very hard, and she did it very, very well, thus pleasing hundreds of millions of children and adults very, very much. In an era of videogame consoles, online multiplayer ''environments,'' and tinier-is-better mobisodes, minisodes, and webisodes, she got people to tote around her big, fat old-fashioned printed-on-paper books as if they were the hottest new entertainment devices on the planet.

Who could argue with that? There is no doubt that she has entertained us, not only this year but for many years with her books and movies. I can't think of another person who deserves the title more than Rowling does. Congratulations JoJo!
Link

Oprah's Book Club Pick: The Pillars of the Earth

Last week, Oprah Winfrey picked Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth as her latest book club pick. The Pillars of the Earth is a 973 page novel that is set in 12th century England. It was first released in 1989 and still sells 100,000 paperback copies per year in the United States alone. To read more about this book visit Ken-Follett.com.

This book sounds really interesting. I'm going to add it to my reading list. I've read other books that Oprah has recommended and haven't been disappointed yet.

Harry Potter Lexicon Delayed by Publisher

Harry Potter Lexicon is a website that was formally supported by J.K. Rowling, but not anymore. HP-Lexicon.org decided to publish a book based on the websites contents to the effect of a Harry Potter encyclopedia. Ms. Rowling also has similar plans to publish a HP encyclopedia of her own. So she filed a lawsuit to block the publication of the book on October 31st. The publishers of RDR Books has agreed to delay the book's publication, which was set to be released on November 28th, until it is determined if the book is in violation of J.K. Rowling's intellectual property rights, or the copyrights on her books which are held by Warner Bros.

J.K. Rowling has issued the following statement on her website concerning the lawsuit:

I take no pleasure in the fact that publication has been prevented for the present. On the contrary, I feel massively disappointed that this matter had to come to court at all. Despite repeated requests, the publishers have refused to even countenance making any changes to the book to ensure that it does not infringe my rights.

Unless their position changes, we will all return to court next year. Given my past good relations with the Lexicon fansite, I can only feel sad and disillusioned that this is where we have ended up.

Who's edition would you rather read?

The Best Children's Illustrated Books of 2007

One of the things I love about children's books is looking at the illustrations. Some books just have pictures or drawings or nothing fancy. But other books are worth having just for the artwork. The New York Times honors these artists with a slideshow of these works along with some book information. View the slideshow.

Don't Publish Your Book with Regnery!

Five authors are suing Regnery Publishers for running a scheme that deprives them of their profits. Regnery Publishing is a Washington imprint of conservative books and are owned by Eagle Publishing.

In the lawsuit the authors say that Eagle sells or gives away copies of their books to book clubs, newsletters and other organizations owned by Eagle “to avoid or substantially reduce royalty payments to authors.”

The authors argue that in reducing royalty payments, the publisher is maximizing its profits and the profits of its parent company at their expense.

“They’ve structured their business essentially as a scam and are defrauding their writers,” Mr. Miniter said in an interview, “causing a tremendous rift inside the conservative community.”

Source

I'm glad to see that the authors are not sitting back and taking it from their publisher. There are too many corporations out there that use subsidiaries of their business to conduct shady business dealings. I hope they get their money and the publisher gets hit hard in the financial aspect.

Britney's Mom is Writing a Parenting Book

Britney Spears' mommy Lynne is writing a parenting book. It is going to be called Pop Culture Mom: A Real Story of Fame and Family in a Tabloid World. It is being published by Thomas Nelson, a Christian publisher and has a . The book is due to be out next Mother's Day.

“It’s a parenting book that’s going to have faith elements to it. I don’t think it’s totally been written yet,” says the publisher’s rep, who expects the manuscript by December.

What do you think, will this book be worth reading? Yes, she's Britney's mom but she is also Jamie Lynn's mom. Her life must be filled with all the good and bad that Hollywood has to offer the parents of child stars. And she's going to need all the faith she can muster where Britney is concerned. I wish her the best but I'm not sure I'll be reading her book.

Stephen King's Literary World

In honor of the fact that I'm only several pages from finishing Stephen King's Lisey's Story (look for my review next week), this post is about what's happening in King's literary world.

• If you haven't bought a copy of Blaze by Richard Bachman (Stephen King's pseudonym), then go buy one because the proceeds go to The Haven Foundation. It's nearly Christmas so buy an extra copy for your SK loving friend.
• Stephen King's next novel is called Duma Key and it's coming out on January 22, 2008.
• Steven King's Dark Tower Marvel Comic Books came out yesterday.
• The movie based on Stephen King's The Mist comes to theaters on November 21, 2007.
• Did you know that Stephen King writes a column for EW.com?
  

Another School Wants to Ban Books

When will people understand that banning books only turns them into classics? Seriously, what are parents and school officials so afraid of when it comes to what our children are reading? The most recent offense comes from two of Pat Conroy's books, Beach Music and The Prince of Tides. I've read both of these books and they are very well written and captivating stories. The offending content includes the topics of violence, suicide and sexual assault.

If your child or student is even interested in reading Conroy, they are most likely in High School. What high school aged child has not already encountered these same subjects before? They can read about these very happenings in the newspaper on any given day.

This atrocity is happening in Charleston West Virgina, and now a student group is planning to sue the Kanawha County Board of Education. Finally, a worthwhile lawsuit!

Source

Playing For Pizza

I really want to read this book. I love John Grisham's writing, American football is my favorite sport to watch on TV, and the story is set in Italy. It doesn't get much better than that!

The story is about Rick Dockery, a football player for the Cleveland Browns. After throwing three interceptions in the closing minutes of the AFC championship game, Rick can only find a pro team to play on by joining the Parma Panthers, from the Italian National Football League. And he's the new quarterback no less. And it's also about Rick in Italy.

If you're a Grisham fan, you'll want to see his mini interview on Amazon where he answers the following questions:

• American football in Italy seems like an unlikely subject for a John Grisham novel. What was the inspiration for Playing for Pizza?

• There is some great football writing in this novel. What kind of research was involved in capturing how this American institution is played in small town Italy?

• Speaking of research, you write lovingly of Italian food and wine in this book. What's your idea of the perfect Italian meal?

• Without giving away too much of the plot, your protagonist falls in love by the novel's end. Did you know when you started writing that Rick would get the girl?

• You have a new legal thriller coming in January 2008. Can you give us any hints about what to expect?

Trump's Think Big and Kick Ass

I never read a book by Donald Trump. I never wanted to. But this one is different. This one looks like it might be interesting if not helpful. It's co-written by Bill Zanker who tells the story how he started The Learning Annex with $5,000 and turned it into a $5 million per year company.

But that's not why I think it will be interesting. It's because it's filled with advice and inspiration, such as:

• Momentum: the Big Mo. How to get it and how to get it back.
• Revenge: how and when to get it (and why it's so sweet).
• "I love you, now sign this!" Why contracts in business and personal life are so important.
• Real-life stories from people who've applied the think BIG formula in their own lives.

Don't you think it's really sweet of Donald to put aside his busy schedule to read and review Rosie O'Donnel's book Celebrity Detox? They really need to just have sex and get it over with. eww!

And check out this video where Trump reveals the secrets of success that he learned from his father:

Watch Donald Trump introduce Think Big and Kick Ass.

Harry Potter Books Banned from MA Catholic School

Reverend Ron Barker removed all of the Harry Potter books from St. Joseph's Catholic School in Wakefield Massachusetts.

"This is a parochial school and I have the moral authority to do this," he said in an interview with FOXNews.com. "For some people, reading those books is a vehicle to become involved in the occult. ... My basic premise is for the spiritual protection of the children."

Some of the parents complained and petitioned Barker in a letter to put the Harry Potter books back in the school's library. From the letter:

"We must allow our children the space to discover how to make correct moral choices on their own," the parents wrote. "While we recognize that some fear that Harry Potter books may lead to the practice of Wicca and Satanism, we respectfully disagree that such fears warrant the removal of reading material from the school library."

Barker responded with these words:

"I’m not preventing people from buying the books," Barker said. "I’m not marching down to the public library demanding that they burn the books. I'm protecting from what could be a danger to some people. Evil is very seductive."... "If there's a possibility for one getting involved, it's good to protect that one," he said.

Source

So why did Reverend Barker wait until the series was complete before he decided that the influence of sorcery and witchcraft was too evil to be allowed in the Catholic school library? Obviously the announcement from J.K. Rowling that Dumbledore was gay had more to do with it then sorcery. But I guess it's safer to blame the witchcraft element than to admit to being a homophobic.

Alice Sebold's New Book: The Almost Moon

I have to read this book! I read both Lucky and The Lovely Bones and they were wonderfully tragic books. And from the description of The Almost Moon, we can expect some more of that with this book too.
Alice Sebold tells us herself what the book is about in this letter:

"I hope you'll like The Almost Moon. I also hope it produces that feeling of discomfort. It's about Helen Knightly who is a mother, a daughter, a lover, and—beginning the night you meet her—a woman who has killed her mother. Obviously I want you to follow her into all the dark places she's going because I believe it's in those dark places where we often see most clearly the truth about how to live or how not to." [Read the whole letter]

The Kite Runner: the Book, the Movie

Khaled Hosseini, author of The Kite Runner, commends the delayed release of the movie that is based on the book. It was delayed for six weeks so that Paramount Pictures can move three of the boys who star in the film and their families from socially conservative Afghanistan where they fear that the boys would be targeted due to a scene in the movie. In this scene one boy becomes a victim of a homosexual rape and his best friend witnesses it but does nothing to stop it.

I read The Kite Runner a couple of years ago and it is written in such a captivating and engrossing manner that makes you feel a part of the story in such a way that when it ends, it continues in your heart for a long time to come.

The movie is expected to debut on December 14th.

Eric Clapton Writes a Memoir

If you are a fan of Eric Clapton's you're sure to love his book titled Clapton: The Autobiography. The rocker, who has managed to keep his private life, well...private, has decided to bar none and bare it all in this memoir. He covers his own intimate life experiences such as drug and alcohol addiction, an affair with Patty Boyd and the death of his four-year-old son. His music was his salvation. Readers rated this book 5 out of 5 stars.

What The Dickens: Gregory Maguire's New Children's Book

Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked, has written a children's book called What The Dickens. What The Dickens is the name of a tooth fairy who came to life in a tin can and discovers he has an affinity for teeth!

Watch an interview video with Gregory Maguire where he talks about this book and his return to writing children's books. Plus there are a lot of other video interviews with him on this page as well.

Second Most Valuable Comic Found in PA Attic

The comic book, which features Batman's debut, is a pre-WWII Detective Comics No. 27. It is worth about $250,000. It was in near-mint condition when it was found in an attic in Pennsylvania and sold to Todd McDevitt, owner of the Pittsburgh region's five New Dimension Comics stores.

When the seller walked in with the Batman issue, "my eyes almost popped out of my head," McDevitt said. I guess I should have been more reserved, but I'm not a very good poker player," he said. Experts estimate there are between 20 and a few hundred copies of the Batman debut. McDevitt's comic now sits safely in an airtight bag in a bank vault. On occasion, he takes it out to show friends and customers. "I've been toying with the idea of reading it, but I haven't yet," he said. "I'm going to savor it."

Source: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,300650,00.html

Oprah's Book Club Pick

Oprah's Book Club pick is Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It is a romantic love story about Florentino Ariza and Fermino Daza, who fall in love. But Fermino marries someone else and Florentino, an incurable romantic, who waits a lifetime for her.

This sounds like a really good story. I think I'm going to have to read this one.

Jenna Bush Starts Book Tour

Jenna Bush's book, Ana's Story, is about a 17 year old single mother in Panama who is H.I.V. positive. Ms. Bush met Ana while she was in Panama as a Unicef intern. The book tour will cover 25 cities across the United States and it's first run will be 500,000 copies. The book is approximately 300 pages long.

Steven King's Dark Tower Marvel Comic Books

As you may already know, Stephen King's Dark Tower series is being made into Marvel comic books. They started with the first prequel miniseries, The Gunslinger Born, came out in periodicals last February. It sold over 100,000 copies and the hardback collection is being released for sale on November 7, 2007. The second miniseries, The Long Road Home, is scheduled to begin next February 2008. The Gunslinger Born is by Robin Furth, Peter David, and Jae Lee and they are expected to also collaborate with the remaining series as well.

I would think The Gunslinger Born - The Complete Comic Collectionis a must-have for any Stephen King fan or collector's enthusiast.

Goldman Family Talk to Oprah About Publishing 'If I Did It'

If you remember, I wrote a post awhile ago about the Goldman's decision to publish O.J.'s If I Did It book. Well, Fred Goldman, the father of victim Ron Goldman, and his daughter Kim appeared on The Oprah Winfrey show to explain why they have decided to publish this controversial book. It looks like my theory was right in that they were preventing O.J. from any earnings while at the same time satisfying part of the settlement they won. Denise Brown isn't happy about it and wouldn't appear on Oprah with the Goldman's. That's understandable since she won't be getting any of the money from the book either. But Oprah herself says she won't buy the book because it's 'blood money'. I think she needs to lighten up because it's not blood money when its okay with the victims family. Why isn't the Brown family getting anything from the sales of the book since they also sued O.J. in a wrongful death suit? I guess the Goldman's beat them to it.

Here's a picture of the new cover:

Maureen McCormick Writes a Book

Maureen McCormick, the actress who played Marcia on The Brady Bunch, has written a memoir called Here's the Story. It will be published by HarperEntertainment in 2008. Maureen's book will be about growing up as a child actress and her struggles with eating disorders, drug addiction and depression. You can read the whole article at The Book Standard.

As a person who grew up watch The Brady Bunch re-runs in the '70's, I am most interested in reading this book and I'm looking forward to it. I never knew she had so many demons but it's so common with child actors, it seems. Hopefully her story has a happy ending for her.

O.J. Simpson's 'If I Did It' Will Be Published After All

You might recall that awhile back, O.J. Simpson was set to publish his book called 'If I Did It', but the Goldman family went to court to have the publication and sale of this book stopped. The courts gave all rights to the book to the Goldman family. This was a brilliant move on their part because O.J. owes them a lot of money from the $38 million wrongful death law suit that they won but O.J. couldn't afford to pay. So now the Goldman's can publish and sell the book and receive all the money it brings in. And O.J. will get none.


[Read the article...]

Laura Bush to Write a Book for Children

Laura Bush, in collaboration with her daughter Jenna, is writing a children's picture book.

In a statement from HarperCollins, the book's publisher, it says:

"The story is loosely based on Mrs. Bush's and Jenna's experiences as teachers"...[The story] "depicts a mischievous little boy who likes to do everything but read. With the help of his teacher, he finds out that books and their characters can be a lot of fun."

The book will be illustrated by Denise Brunkus, who illustrates for the Junie B. Jones series. Net proceeds of the book will be donated to Teach for America and The New Teacher Project. It will be published next spring 2008 and is yet untitled.


[Read the article...]

6 Reasons Banning Children's Books is Stupid

As I've mentioned before, I am very much against banning books. The newest target of the "irate parents book banning club" is Junie B. Jones because she has bad grammar and bad spelling skills.

Banning is stupid! Here's why:

1. Your child will talk the way you talk. I promise you that. If you use good grammar, so will they. They may read a book with bad grammar, like Junie B. or Tom Sawyer, and they might emulate the speech for a period of time. But they will get bored of it and resort to the grammar that you use. This happens because you are their primary speech teachers. Unless you've delegated the job to someone else, in which case I can't make any guarantees.

2. Kids will either learn to spell correctly or they may end up being the kind of person who needs to use a dictionary or spell check. In which case it's not the end of the world.

3. If you insist on feeling insecure in your child's ability to understand the difference between how they are expected to talk and how a character in a book talks, you could use the book as a lesson on how not to talk.

4. Banning is not only stupid, it reduces our choices thus taking a chunk out of our freedom.

5. Don't be afraid to let your child visit a different perspective through books. It helps them to learn who they are in a world full of people who are different from themselves.

6. Taking books away from children is like encouraging them not to read. Be happy that your child is interested in books. Reading is good for them! Even if it has bad grammar and incorrect spelling.

Even though this list is specifically in response to the Junie B. issues, the principles can still apply to other books whose topics parents find uncomfortable and ban worthy.

The Cat in the Hat Turns 50!

I just came across this FoxNews article about The Cat in the Hat turning 50 years old. I remember my sisters reading that, as well as other Dr. Seuss books, to me when I was little. I also read it to my children.

What a trouble maker that Cat was! As a child I wished he'd come stir up some trouble in my house when my mother wasn't home. But if the truth be known, my true hero's were Thing 1 and Thing 2! I loved how they came out of their box and went straight to the job of having fun!

As a mother, I'm glad The Cat in the Hat never paid my kids a visit. Imagine the mess to clean up if he did! ;) And yet, he how to have fun. Shouldn't we also take that wisdom to heart?

I'm glad I found that article for the unexpected trip down memory lane.

I think the first Dr. Seuss book I ever read (or memorized) was One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. What was your first book?

Deathly Hallows Party

I mentioned previously that I planned to attend the Harry Potter party at Borders last night. There was a write up about it in today's local paper: A Frenzy for Potter.

There wasn't a frenzy, but the media always hypes things up. ;) There was a lot of people though. I waited in line for 45 minutes for a cup of coffee at the cafe. The check out process was organized and I got my copy just after 1 AM.

I read the first chapter and part of the second chapter when I got home. Today I am reading it as I can, but I'm still only on chapter four.

Online Bookseller Mails Out 'Deathly Hallows' Early - Gets Sued

As the Harry Potter sale date approaches, there are more and more discussions taking place both online and off. But nobody expected to get their book early. But that's what happened to a guy named Will Collier. His copy was on his doorstep more than four days early. So what does he do about it? He sells it on ebay of course!
Read his article: I was an eBay Voldemort.

Later, I was reading news headlines and I came across: Early Shipping of 'Harry Potter' Brings Lawsuit.

Looks like things are heating up! Do I dare mention the publisher-hacked digital copy that even Newsweek tried to download?

I have managed to steer clear of spoilers so far. I'll be attending the pre-release party tomorrow night and from that point I'll be reading and avoiding the internet as much as possible until I'm finished the book. ;)

PS- None of the articles I've linked to in this post contain spoilers.

Romance Writing Contest

I got an email a few days ago from Gather announcing a writing contest called First Chapters Romance. I thought I'd share it with my you since a lot of us readers also enjoy writing. The winner of the contest gets a guaranteed publishing contract with Pocket Books/Simon & Schuster.

If you've never heard of Gather, here's the faq's link.

Good luck! :)

Parents call 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' Pornographic

Did you ever notice that it's almost always the parents that get themselves in an uproar over the books that the schools find appropriate for our children to read?

Commack High School in New York has added The Perks of Being a Wallflower to their summer reading list for their incoming sophomores. The parents are having fits about it, calling it pornographic. I haven't read the book myself yet, but I looked up the review on Amazon. The book addresses many issues that teens face such as first relationships, sexuality, drug experimentation and suicide.

I'll be forever grateful that nobody tried to limit what I could read when I was growing up. My parents never balked or got upset about what I chose to read. (Or what the school's chose either for that matter). I grew up believing that reading was good, a pastime to be encouraged. And I still do.

What Will Happen to Harry

This being the biggest Harry Potter month ever, with the Order of the Phoenix coming out in theaters and the release of the final book, everyone is talking about Harry. The movie is said to be the longest and best one yet, but the only thing people want to talk about is whether Harry will die in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Of course we all hope he triumps and remains to be our hero, but no one knows for sure.

J.K. Rowling did an interview with BBC and she said this in reference to writing the ending:
"I was in a hotel room on my own, I was sobbing my heart out, I downed half a bottle of champagne from the mini-bar in one and went home with mascara all over my face."

But that doesn't necessarily mean that Harry is dead. Does it? It could mean that she is saddened by the end of Harry Potter, the series.

And then there's Daniel Radcliffe, the actor who play Harry Potter in the movies, who thinks Harry will be killed. Here's what he told the press: "I think I might die in [the final book]," before quickly adding: "That's just my prediction. I think so, but I've no idea at all; I have no inside hints."

Ugh! I can't wait to find out what happens! Another thing I'm dying to know....is Snape a good guy or a bad guy? I've always thought he was going to prove to be a good guy, but it's not looking good for him after the Half-Blood Prince.

Our local Borders usually has a Harry Potter Party leading up to the midnight release. I've never gone to one, but I might go for this one last time. What will you do?

Harry Potter Deathly Hallows Leaked???

Spoilers from the final Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, have hit the internet earlier this week. But are they true? One hacker says they are because he hacked into the computers at London publisher Bloomsbury and has evidently posted what he says he read on the internet. Scholastic replied by saying, "There is plenty of material circulating on the Internet, and you can't believe everything you read. No one has it..."

So how do you avoid spoilers before you read the book yourself? What I do is I avoid anything that has to do with it. When the Half Blood Prince was released, it was awhile before I read it because I was re-reading the other books. So when I saw any talk of Harry Potter online, I made a speedy exit. Not to mention I strictly forbade my children to say a word about it around me. ;)

Blow Out by Catherine Coulter

My husband found this book lying on a beach in North Carolina. He should have left it there because it was probably abandoned because it ended so bad.

I just finished it a couple of days ago and the story was pretty good up until Coulter jumps ship with what I call writer's cop-out. That's when an author can't seem to come up with a way to tie up all the loose ends and resorts to a scenario that is not believable and brings the whole storyline to a ridiculous ending.

Spoiler: highlight area between [ ] to read the spoiler

[First of all the book is called Blow Out. This is in reference to the FBI agent Savich's tire that blows out in the beginning of the story. It is because of the blow out that he comes to know the ghost of a woman who was murdered 20 years ago and want him to solve her murder and help her son. The problem with naming the book Blow Out is that the ghost story is not the main story. The main story is about solving the murder of a supreme court justice. You'd think that since Coulter is intertwining two murder mysteries that sooner or later the stories will tie in to each other somehow. But no. The only tie-in is the same FBI agents are working on both mysteries. Then at the peak of the book, where the stories questions get answered and the cases get solved, Coulter cops-out with not one, but two criminal confessions. Give us a break! Criminals very rarely confess just because they're going to either die or kill the person they are confessing to and we are to believe that it happened twice in the same book? Oh, and did I mention that there was also a cheesy love story intertwined in the two unrelated mysteries?]

But to give credit where it's due, the main story was a good one. There was a surprising twist that occurred after it was solved that made it a bit more interesting, although irrelevant. I just hate a good story with a bad ending.

Laura's Rating: 2/5

This book is for sale in my half.com shop.

High Profile by Robert B. Parker

From Booklist:
*Starred Review* Walton Weeks is a one-man media empire. He hosts a popular national radio gabfest, writes a newspaper column, and churns out best-selling books. At least he did until someone shot him and left him hanging from a tree in Paradise, Massachusetts. Shortly thereafter, the body of Weeks' pregnant lover is discovered in a nearby dumpster. Paradise police chief Jesse Stone fends off pressure from the governor and the state police in order to solve the high-profile case with the resources of his 12-person force. The potential suspects include two ex-wives, a widow, a bodyguard, and assorted staff members. Stone's problem is determining a motive. In a parallel plot, Stone attends to the needs of his ex-wife, Jenn, who alleges she was raped and claims she is being stalked by her attacker. Unable to cope with the murders and the rape, Stone calls on private investigator Sunny Randall--a sometime lover--to help with Jenn. Obsessive, sometimes unhealthy love is a recurring theme in Parker's work. In his Spenser novels, the protagonist and his lover have come through the tough times intact. Stone and Jenn have a strong but deleterious bond and are in the midst of a trying emotional journey to an unknown destination. This is Parker's most complex, ambitious novel in years. Spenser is always the toughest, coolest guy in the room. Jesse Stone sometimes seems like the toughest, coolest guy in the room, but he knows he's not. Great reading from an old hand who hasn't lost his touch. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Putnam Adult (February 6, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0399154043
ISBN-13: 978-0399154041

Customer Review: 3.5/5

Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

From Publishers Weekly:
In this latest installment in Phillips's romance series starring the Chicago Stars football players (This Heart of Mine; Nobody's Baby but Mine), the bestselling novelist delivers a love story wrought with delicious sexual tension and charged banter. When debonair starting quarterback Dean Robillard, on a soul-searching road trip after a serious shoulder injury, happens across Blue Bailey, walking alongside the road wearing a beaver costume, he stops to help her. Blue is far from a Barbie-esque football groupie, but broke and stranded, she needs both a ride and a job, and the football all-star (driving a sexy Aston Martin) poses an interesting opportunity. As the two travel from Colorado to Dean's new farmhouse in east Tennessee, Blue resists his advances, and both athlete and vagabond struggle with deeply rooted trust and familial issues that are soon exacerbated by the unexpected presence of Dean's mother at the farm. While the verbal sparring in this textbook case of opposites attracting feels stagy at first, the rough edges come together in an alluring way. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardcover: 400 pages
Publisher: William Morrow (February 6, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0060734574
ISBN-13: 978-0060734572

Customer Rating: 4/5

The Seat of the Soul by Gary Zukav

Amazon.com Review:
Gary Zukav's American Book Award-winning The Dancing Wu Li Masters masterfully introduces the layman to quantum and particle physics, as well as Einstein's relativity theories. With a similar dose of amiable, easy-to-understand prose, Zukav guides readers into the spiritual realm in his bestselling The Seat of the Soul. Zukav questions the Western model of the soul, alleging that the human species is in the midst of a great transformation, evolving from a species that pursues power based upon the perceptions of the five senses--"external power"--to one that pursues power based upon perceptions of the soul--"authentic power." He believes that humans are immortal souls first, physical beings second, and that once we become conscious of this transformation--once we align our personalities with our soul--we will stimulate our spiritual growth and become better people in the process. This insightful, lucid synthesis of modern psychology and new-age principles has been described as the "physics of the soul." Who better to explain such heady concepts than Gary Zukav? --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster (March 17, 1999)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0684865181
ISBN-13: 978-0684865188

Customer Review: 3.5/5

Most Likely to Die by Lisa Jackson, Beverly Barton, Wendy Corsi Staub

Publisher's Weekly Review:
Despite individual success in the field of suspense, the first collaboration of Jackson (Fatal Burn), Staub (The Final Victim) and Barton (Dangerous Deception) is likely to disappoint their fans. The plot line will ring familiar to slasher movie buffs: a 20-year high school reunion triggers a series of brutal murders committed to avenge an old grievance. In this case, the original sin is the crossbow slaying of popular hunk Jake Marcott, the object of desire for much of the graduating class of Portland, Ore.'s St. Elizabeth's High School, on the night of the St. Valentine's Day Dance. The trauma has become a distant wound for the women who loved him until the 2006 reunion plans spark new killings, and three classmates, Rachel, Kristen and Lindsay, must race to unmask the murderer before they themselves fall victim. Unfortunately, the authors don't do very much to keep the identity of the murderer hidden from the reader, seriously hindering their efforts to wring suspense from the cookie-cutter scenario. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Paperback: 464 pages
Publisher: Zebra (February 1, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0821775766
ISBN-13: 978-0821775769

Customer Review: 4/5

The Tender Bar: A Memoir by J.R. Moehringer

My Review:
The Tender Bar is full of atmosphere! The people portrayed in the story are true characters, from Joey D. and his "mouse" (he talks in the general direction of his pocket so J.R. decides he must keep a pet mouse in there) to Chas who speaks like Yogi Bear, to Uncle Charlie who loves his booze almost as much as his gambling.

J.R. grows up in his grandparent's dilapidated old house in Manhasset, NY with his grandparent's, his mother, his Uncle Charlie and at different times, his aunt and cousins--where the general goal of most of them is to move out. He spends many of his boyhood evenings and summer days listening to his radio in search of The Voice that belongs to his father, who DJ's for various stations throughout the years and imagines that he is just like his radio personality.

Through much struggling, J.R. and his mother finally move out and head for Arizona. But it is on his summer visits back to NY that J.R. discovers the camaraderie of Publicans, the neighborhood's favorite bar where his Uncle Charlie works. It is there that J.R. finds the acceptance of men that he searched for his whole life.

As the years go on, J.R. continues to grow, learn and mature. He takes us on his journey through high school, college, first love and first career--always entwined with Publican's Bar and it's regulars. At times in his life he struggled with his writing, using too many words...to big of words...and not making "true" with his characters. His mother tells him to tone down and simplify, and apparently he has learned to do just that. The Tender Bar is his first book and it's a wonderfully put together story. Every word, every character rings true and real.

My Rating: 5/5

Hardcover: 384 pages
ISBN-10: 1401300642
ASIN: B000JGWE36

Customer Review: 4.5/5

Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East: 1776 to the Present by Michael B. Oren

From Publishers Weekly:
In this engaging if unbalanced survey, the author of the acclaimed Six Days of War finds continuity in U.S. relations with the Middle East from the early 19th-century war against the Barbary pirates to today's Iraq war. As America's power grew, he contends, strategic considerations became complicated by the region's religious significance, especially to the Protestant missionaries whose interests drove U.S. policy in the 19th century and who championed a Jewish state in Palestine long before the Zionist movement took up that cause. Meanwhile, Oren notes, Americans' romantic fantasies about the Muslim world (as expressed in Mideast-themed movies) have repeatedly run aground on stubborn, squalid realities, most recently in the Iraq fiasco. Oren dwells on the pre-WWII era, when U.S.-Mideast relations were of little significance. The postwar period, when these relations were central to world affairs, gets shoehorned into 127 hasty pages, and the emphasis on continuity gives short shrift to the new and crucial role of oil in U.S. policy making. Oren's treatment views this history almost entirely through American eyes; the U.S. comes off as usually well intentioned and idealistic, if often confused and confounded by regional complexities. Oren's is a fluent, comprehensive narrative of two centuries of entanglement, but it's analytically disappointing. Photos. (Jan. 15)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardcover: 672 pages
Publisher: W. W. Norton (January 16, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0393058263
ISBN-13: 978-0393058260

Customer Review: 4.5/5

The Alexandria Link: A Novel by Steve Berry

From Booklist:
Berry, author of several big-selling high-concept thrillers, including The Templar Legacy (2006) and The Third Secret (2005), is back with another paranoid fantasy for fans who like their heroes to face unimaginable dangers in a variety of glamorous locations. Berry's hero, Cotton Malone (recently retired from the Department of Justice's Magellan Billet, which specializes in extra-sensitive international investigations), has reinvented himself as a seller of rare books in Copenhagen. Trouble, of course, finds him even in Denmark--first in the person of his ex-wife, who bears the news that their son has been kidnapped. Then the kidnappers convince Malone of their seriousness by torching his bookstore. The central conflict here comes from the fact that what the kidnappers want--"the Alexandria link," the key to locating the remains of the vanished library of Alexandria--is the one thing Malone, who knows the whereabouts of the link, cannot give them. So, with the conflict firmly established, and the villains showing their mettle, the plot is off and running across the globe, the story driven by a series of short chapters, each acting as a little time bomb. Trite characters and a formulaic plot (drawing, yet again, on The Da Vinci Code) get in the way, but Berry does make intriguing use of ancient history, and the action certainly zooms along. Fun reading if you keep moving and don't take time to digest. Connie Fletcher
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Hardcover: 480 pages
Publisher: Ballantine Books (January 30, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0345485750
ISBN-13: 978-0345485755

Customer Review: 5/5

Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire: The Methods and Madness Inside Room 56 by Rafe Esquith

From Publishers Weekly:
Starred Review. Esquith might be the only public school teacher to be honored by both Oprah Winfrey and the Dalai Lama; he is the only school teacher ever to receive the president's National Medal of the Arts. For the past 25 years, Esquith has taught fifth graders at Hobart Elementary in central Los Angeles. Like most progressive educators, Esquith is outraged by the tyranny of testing, the scripting of teaching under "No Child Left Behind" and the overwhelming bureaucratization of the education industry. Still, he's done wonders with the basic curriculum—developing a hands-on arts program, a money-management curriculum and a sports-based statistics unit. Esquith and his Hobart Shakespeareans are world famous for the rock opera they create every year. Throughout each school day, Esquith teaches life skills: how to think about problems, how to plan a strategy to solve them and, most important, how to work together and be nice to each other. While his goals are inspiring, he's also practical—most chapters include affordable, how-to directions for a variety of his most effective classroom activities; he's even got a few tips for revamping those inescapable "test prep" sessions. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Viking Adult (January 18, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0670038156
ISBN-13: 978-0670038152

Customer Review: 4.5/5

Natural Cures "They" Don't Want You To Know About by Kevin Trudeau

Book Description:
Kevin Trudeau blows the lid off a nest of deception and double standards concerning general and individual health in this new book, "Natural Cures 'They' Don't Want You To Know About." Kevin has risked government prosecution to bring you the full story of an intricate conspiracy.

From the retail supermarket outlets of huge, publicly traded corporations comes processed, manipulated, engineered "food products" – produced by other wings of the same corporation. These artificial, toxic treats are then sold with the blessings of the Federal Trade Commission and Food and Drug Administration – government organizations charged with safeguarding the public good – laying the foundations for future disease and chronic ill-health for the consumer, and a guaranteed source of revenue for the medical and pharmaceutical sectors.

Kevin reveals the shocking truth of how drugs – which are being advertised directly to the consumer, pushing their use to an all-time high – are actually the cause of illness and disease climbing to near epidemic levels.

And, though it sounds dire, Kevin offers a light in the darkness and directs the reader to scores and scores of alternative therapies, medical practices, philosophies and – most importantly – potential cures that help your body regain its natural state of health and vibrancy.

So follow Kevin on an amazing journey through the behind-the-scenes world of corporate sponsored "nutrition" and "health," and learn about "Natural Cures 'THEY' Don't Want You To Know About." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Hardcover: 572 pages
Publisher: Alliance Publishing; Updated edition (June 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0975599518
ISBN-13: 978-0975599518

Customer Review: 3.5/5

Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen, Kevin Hawkes

From School Library Journal:
Starred Review. PreSchool-Grade 2–Miss Merriweather, head librarian and decorum-keeper, first meets Lion when he saunters past his stone counterparts and into the stacks. Scowling circulation assistant Mr. McBee seems intent on having the enormous cat ejected, but his boss declares that as long as he breaks no rules, he is welcome. The beast does misbehave though, roaring loud displeasure when storytime ends. At Miss Merriweather's reprimand, the contrite-looking lion promises to reform. In fact, he becomes something of a fixture in the building, dusting with his tail, licking envelopes, and serving as a stepstool for small patrons. Everyone appreciates him–except Mr. McBee. When Lion lets out another tremendous RAAAHHHRRR!, the man bursts into Miss Merriweather's office to snitch–and there he finds her in distress, having fallen from a stool and broken her arm. Lion, à la Lassie, has saved the day, but he is so chagrined by his own rule-breaking behavior that he doesn't return to the library. People miss him. Even Mr. McBee. A feel-good ending and a reminder that Sometimes, there is a good reason to break the rules bring the story to its most-satisfactory conclusion. Hawkes's deft acrylic-and-pencil pictures have appeal for generations of library lovers. They are rich with expression, movement, and detail. The lordly, lovable lion is a masterful mix–regal beast and furry friend–and the many human characters are drawn with animation and emotion. This winsome pairing of text and illustration is a natural for storytime and a first purchase for every collection.–Kathy Krasniewicz, Perrot Library, Old Greenwich, CT
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Reading level: Ages 4-8
Hardcover: 48 pages
Publisher: Candlewick (July 25, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0763622621
ISBN-13: 978-0763622626

Customer Review: 5/5

What a Party! by Terry McAuliffe (Author), Steve Kettmann

Book Description:

“I thought I knew Terry McAuliffe as well as anyone, but this time he surprised even me. Who knew Terry could sit still long enough to give us a book this good? What a Party! is a must-read for all of us who love politics, believe in public service, and know that laughter is often the best survival strategy.”

—President Bill Clinton

“No one knows more about American politics than Terry McAuliffe. He gives
us some remarkable insights and knows how to make his accounts both humorous
and informative.”

—President Jimmy Carter

“I’ve often said Terry’s energy could light up a city, and readers of this book will know why. Terry’s excitement for politics—and life—is evident on every page.”

—Senator Hillary Clinton

For more than twenty-five years, Terry McAuliffe has been at the epicenter of American politics. Just out of Catholic University in Washington, Terry took a position with the Carter-Mondale campaign and quickly became one of the campaign’s chief fund-raisers—and hasn’t looked back since. The list of Terry´s former mentors, friends, and close associates in the nation’s capital reads like a who’s who of legendary Democrats: Tip O’Neill. Jimmy Carter. Dick Gephardt. Bill Clinton. Hillary Clinton. Al Gore. The list goes on and on. Terry has fought hard for the Democratic Party his entire life and, as Bill Clinton reveals here for the first time, he was the first one in the party to see opportunity in the Republican gains in the 1994 Congressional elections.
Without question the most successful fund-raiser in political history, Terry established himself as a heavyweight Democratic strategist and leader who was George W. Bush´s most vocal and persistent critic during the first four years of the Bush 43 presidency. He earned rave reviews even from former critics for his groundbreaking work as chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2001 to 2005, pulling the DNC out of debt for the first time in its history. Terry has served as a confidant and adviser to President Clinton and countless presidential candidates, a mediator among party leaders, the chairman of a national convention and presidential inaugural, and a forceful spokesman for the party—all without losing his reputation as a colorful, fun-loving character liked and respected even by his Republican adversaries.
What a Party! is a fascinating, hilarious, and provocative look at the life of one of Washington’s legendary figures. From wrestling an alligator to running the Democratic National Committee to his friendship with President Clinton, Terry McAuliffe’s wonderful memoir covers it all and is, without doubt, the political book of the year.

Hardcover: 416 pages
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books (January 23, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0312357877
ISBN-13: 978-0312357870

Customer Review: 4.5/5

The Castle in the Forest: A Novel by Norman Mailer

From Publishers Weekly:
Starred Review. Mailer did Jesus in The Gospel According to the Son; now he plumbs the psyche of history's most demonic figure in this chilling fictional chronicle of Hitler's boyhood. Mailer tells the story through the eyes of Dieter, a devil tasked by Satan (usually called the Maestro) with fostering Hitler's nascent evil, but in this study of a dysfunctional 19th-century middle-class Austrian household, the real presiding spirit is Freud. Young Adolph (often called Adi) is the offspring of an incestuous marriage between a coarse, domineering civil servant and a lasciviously indulgent mom. The boy duly develops an obsession with feces, a fascination with power, a grandiose self-image and a sexually charged yen for mass slaughter (the sight of gassed or burning beehives thrills him). Dieter frets over Hitler's ego-formation while marveling at the future dictator's burning gaze, his ability to sway weak minds and the instinctive führerprinzip that emerges when he plays war with neighborhood boys—talents furthered by Central Europe's ambient romantic nationalism. Mailer's view of evil embraces religions and metaphysics, but it's rooted in the squalid soil of toilet-training travails and perverted sexual urges. The novel sometimes feels like a psychoanalytic version of The Screwtape Letters, but Mailer arrives at a somber, compelling portrait of a monstrous soul. (Jan. 23)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardcover: 496 pages
Publisher: Random House (January 23, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0394536495
ISBN-13: 978-0394536491

Customer Review: 4.5/5

On the Night You Were Born by Nancy Tillman

From Publishers Weekly:
The birth of a baby—"the one and only ever you"—causes jubilation throughout creation in this quietly celebratory picture book from newcomer Tillman. Polar bears dance, giraffes weave to the sound of brass horns, and "the moon smiled with such wonder/ that the stars peeked in to see you/ and the night wind whispered,/ 'Life will never be the same.' " Tillman successfully sidesteps the soft-focus sappiness that can accompany this genre. Her writing has the authenticity of whispered conversation; occasionally, she pauses in her exaltations of the baby to address the subject directly: "I think I'll count to three so you can wiggle your toes for me." Her strong, assured paintings truly set this book apart. The pictures subtly radiate golden glints of moonlight, and her almost sculptural rendering style gives her characters a hefty physicality that counterbalances the ethereal sentiments being expressed. Although one suspects that grown-ups will be most taken with the topic and treatment, this is one of those rare baby books that should make both skeptics and sentimentalists of all ages happy. All ages. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends (October 17, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0312346069
ISBN-13: 978-0312346065

Customer Review: 5/5

Younger You by Eric R. Braverman

From the Back Cover:

Break the aging code and feel 15 years younger—from the inside out.

In the constant battle to stay young and feel fit, we will try any of the quick fixes that come on the market, including so-called miracle products, fad diets, trendy exercise programs, and untested supplements. Many even risk elective surgical procedures just to look young again. But you don't need surgery, pricey cosmetics, or starvation to look and feel 15 years younger. The secret to living a longer, more vibrant life has at last been discovered, and the proverbial fountain of youth is right in your hands.

Younger You shows you step by step how to:

• Get a restful, restorative night's sleep and have
• Improve your mood by increasing your natural hormone levels
• Help your heart with natural supplements
• Use herbs and spices to help prevent heart disease
• Continue to enjoy an active sex life
• Increase your muscle mass, boost your memory, build your bones, save your skin, and much more!

Dr. Eric Braverman, a leading expert in anti-aging medicine, has skillfully combined conventional wisdom with his unique knowledge of the workings of the brain to unravel the mystery of what makes us age and how disease in one area affects the entire body. By identifying the distinct parts of your body that are aging most rapidly, you can crack your own aging code and turn back time. While the aging code is our biological destiny, it can be broken by affectively treating these weakest links. Serious health conditions including heart disease, arthritis, osteoporosis, depression, and even Alzheimer's disease are no longer inevitable. The more subtle signs and signals of aging can be prolonged and even reversed, so you never have to deal with obesity, wrinkles, age spots, deteriorating strength, diminished libido, or other symptoms of aging. Dr. Braverman gives you all the information you need to break your own aging code and start living a healthier, longer life now.

Younger You has doctors talking . . .

"Dr. Braverman zeroes in on a very important concept: the need to keep all organ systems healthy and functional. Most important, he also offers provocative methods for doing just that."
--Julian Whitaker, M.D.
Founder, Whitaker Wellness Institute and author of Health & Healing Newsletter

"Focusing on the critical role of hormones produced by the brain, Dr. Braverman outlines a totally integrative program to restore hormonal balance and thereby restore readers to a younger, healthier, and more vital self, regardless of chronological age."
--Nicholas Perricone, M.D., FACN
Bestselling author of 7 Secrets to Beauty, Health, and Longevity, The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet, The Perricone Promise, The Perricone Prescription, and The Wrinkle Cure

"Just as Dr. Braverman says, we are only as young as our oldest part. This book is not just for us, but for our children, who can make changes to their diet and lifestyle now and reap the rewards later."
--David Perlmutter, M.D.
Director, Perlmutter Health Center and author of The Better Brain Book

"Younger You is an interesting and logical approach to preventing, diagnosing, and modifying the aging process. . . . Baby boomers will find much in these pages to protect and reassure them.”
--Isadore Rosenfeld, M.D.
Rossi Distinguished Professor of Clinical Medicine, New York Hospital Weil Cornell Medical Center, and author of Live Now, Age Later, Power to the Patient, and Doctor, What Should I Eat?

Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (November 27, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0071466134
ISBN-13: 978-0071466134

Customer Review:

Born On A Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant by Daniel Tammet

From Publishers Weekly:
This unique first-person account offers a window into the mind of a high-functioning, 27-year-old British autistic savant with Asperger's syndrome. Tammet's ability to think abstractly, deviate from routine, and empathize, interact and communicate with others is impaired, yet he's capable of incredible feats of memorization and mental calculation. Besides being able to effortlessly multiply and divide huge sums in his head with the speed and accuracy of a computer, Tammet, the subject of the 2005 documentary Brainman, learned Icelandic in a single week and recited the number pi up to the 22,514th digit, breaking the European record. He also experiences synesthesia, an unusual neurological syndrome that enables him to experience numbers and words as "shapes, colors, textures and motions." Tammet traces his life from a frustrating, withdrawn childhood and adolescence to his adult achievements, which include teaching in Lithuania, achieving financial independence with an educational Web site and sustaining a long-term romantic relationship. As one of only about 50 people living today with synesthesia and autism, Tammet's condition is intriguing to researchers; his ability to express himself clearly and with a surprisingly engaging tone (given his symptoms) makes for an account that will intrigue others as well. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardcover: 240 pages
Publisher: Free Press (January 9, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416535071
ISBN-13: 978-1416535072

Customer Review: 4/5

Goodnight Nobody by Jennifer Weiner

My Review:
Kate Klein, a former newswriter and city girl finds herself living in an upscale Conneticut suburban with three children and where she never quite feels like she fits in. Then one day Kitty Cavanaugh, a member of the "perfect mothers" clan, invites Kate for lunch. But when she arrives, she discovers Kitty's murdered body on the kitchen floor and the phone number of Evan McKenna, her long lost love on Kitty's counter.
Her newswriter instincts kick in and before she knows it, she's enlisted her best friend Janie Segal and relunctantly Evan, to help her ask questions and try to find out who killed Kitty and why. In the process she learns a few "not so perfect" things about her neighbors.
Jennifer Weiner has managed to write a lighthearted and at times, humorous murder mystery. She has the different angles and perspectives just right so that it's nearly impossible to guess the outcome!

Hardcover: 384 pages
Publisher: Atria (September 20, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743470117
ISBN-13: 978-0743470117

My Rating: 5/5
I enjoyed every minute I spent reading this book.

Customer Review: 3/5

The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography by Sidney Poitier

Oprah's Book Club Selection

Book Description:
"I have no wish to play the pontificating fool, pretending that I’ve suddenly come up with the answers to all life’s questions. Quite that contrary, I began this book as an exploration, an exercise in self-questing. In other words, I wanted to find out, as I looked back at a long and complicated life, with many twists and turns, how well I’ve done at measuring up to the values I myself have set."
--Sidney Poitier

In this luminous memoir, a true American icon looks back on his celebrated life and career. His body of work is arguably the most morally significant in cinematic history, and the power and influence of that work are indicative of the character of the man behind the many storied roles. Sidney Poitier here explores these elements of character and personal values to take his own measure -- as a man, as a husband and a father, and as an actor.

Poitier credits his parents and his childhood on tiny Cat Island in the Bahamas for equipping him with the unflinching sense of right and wrong and of self-worth that he has never surrendered and that have dramatically shaped his world. "In the kind of place where I grew up," recalls Poitier, "what’s coming at you is the sound of the sea and the smell of the wind and momma’s voice and the voice of your dad and the craziness of your brothers and sisters … and that’s it." Without television, radio, and material distractions to obscure what matters most, he could enjoy the simple things, endure the long commitments, and find true meaning in his life.

Poitier was uncompromising as he pursued a personal and public life that would honor his upbringing and the invaluable legacy of his parents. Just a few years after his introduction to indoor plumbing and the automobile, Poitier broke racial barrier after racial barrier to launch a pioneering acting career. Committed to the notion that what one does for a living articulates to who one is, Poitier played only forceful and affecting characters who said something positive, useful, and lasting about the human condition.

Here is Poitier’s own introspective look at what has informed his performances and his life. Poitier explores the nature of sacrifice and commitment, price and humility, rage and forgiveness, and paying the price for artistic integrity. What emerges is a picture of a man in the face of limits – his own and the world’s. A triumph of the spirit, The Measure of a Man captures the essential Poitier.

Paperback
Publisher: HarperSanFrancisco (January 26, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0061357901
ISBN-13: 978-0061357909

Customer Review: 5/5

Exile: A Novel by Richard North Patterson

From Publishers Weekly:
Bestseller Patterson's new thriller with its focus on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been overtaken by events (there's no mention of Israel's unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005 or the recent fighting across the Lebanese border), but the underlying political issues may be enough for most readers to put the real world aside and suspend disbelief. Harvard-trained attorney David Wolfe, a San Franciscan on the verge of a congressional campaign, has his plans derailed when his law school classmate (and one-time lover), Palestinian Hana Arif, asks him to defend her from charges that she led a conspiracy that assassinated dovish Israeli leader Amos Ben-Aron. Inspired by idealism and lingering passion, Wolfe jeopardizes his political future by taking the case. His suspicion that the suicide bombers who attacked Ben-Aron were aided by a security breach leads him to Israel and Lebanon. While Patterson (Conviction) attempts to portray the issues fairly, the introduction of a soap-operaish subplot undercuts his intended high purpose, and the resolution of the mystery is too predictable to surprise. 10-city author tour. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardcover: 576 pages
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (January 9, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0805079475
ISBN-13: 978-0805079470

Customer Review: 4.5/5

The Freedom Writers Diary by The Freedom Writers, Erin Gruwell

Book Description:
Shocked by the teenage violence she witnessed during the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles, Erin Gruwell became a teacher at a high school rampant with hostility and racial intolerance. For many of these students–whose ranks included substance abusers, gang members, the homeless, and victims of abuse–Gruwell was the first person to treat them with dignity, to believe in their potential and help them see it themselves. Soon, their loyalty towards their teacher and burning enthusiasm to help end violence and intolerance became a force of its own. Inspired by reading The Diary of Anne Frank and meeting Zlata Filipovic (the eleven-year old girl who wrote of her life in Sarajevo during the civil war), the students began a joint diary of their inner-city upbringings. Told through anonymous entries to protect their identities and allow for complete candor, The Freedom Writers Diary is filled with astounding vignettes from 150 students who, like civil rights activist Rosa Parks and the Freedom Riders, heard society tell them where to go–and refused to listen.

Proceeds from this book benefit the Freedom Writers Foundation, an organization set up to provide scholarships for underprivieged youth and to train teachers

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Broadway; Mti edition (December 12, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0767924908
ISBN-13: 978-0767924900

Customer Review: 4/5

Point Blank (FBI Thriller (G.P. Putnam's Sons) by Catherine Coulter

From Publishers Weekly:
Coulter's new thriller romance (Blowout, etc.) opens with Ruth Warnecki lost in a cave in rural Virginia while fellow (married) FBI agents Dillon Savich and Lacey Sherlock are hot on the tail of a psychotic dirty old man (Moses Grace) and his flirtatious teenage partner (Claudia), who've kidnapped a smalltime comedian. Coulter fans know if they suspend belief—really suspend belief—she'll deliver page-turners filled with good guys battling bad guys as well as enjoying domestic tranquility. After Ruth makes it out of the cave, she's cared for by Dixon Noble, the local sheriff and ex-New Yorker with two kids and a missing wife; then Ruth and the gang return to the cave to discover the body of a murdered music student. Lacey and Dillon consult MAX the miracle computer about Moses while Dix introduces Ruth to his domineering father-in-law, Chappy, and musician Gordon, Chappy's geriatric lech of a brother. Coulter alternates between the search for the student's killer and the hunt for Moses, cases tied together only by the FBI agents solving them and the theme of criminally insane grumpy old men. Coulter continues to prove more convincing describing virtue than vice, which means that sympathetic characters and happy endings take precedence over serious detective work. (On sale Aug. 23)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Hardcover: 432 pages
ISBN-10: 0399153225
ASIN: B000F5ZH8A

Customer Review: 3/5

A Princess Primer by Stephanie True Peters

Book Description:
For ages the fairy godmother has helped make young girls’ dreams come true. Now, for the first time, she reveals her closely guarded secrets in one wondrous volume. Everything a girl needs to know about being a princess is presented in this facsimile of the fairy godmother’s personal journal, from how to wear a sparkling tiara and choose a fancy gown to what to expect at a royal ball and how to recognize a true prince. In addition to her advice and tips, the fairy godmother offers stories and personal reminiscences, all illustrated with breathtaking paintings of rich landscapes, marvelous castle interiors, and princesses from around the world. This is an incomparable gift for girls who dream of having a little fairy godmother magic in their lives.

Reading level: Ages 4-8
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile (September 21, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0525477659
ISBN-13: 978-0525477655

Customer Review: 3.5/5

The Best Life Diet by Bob Greene

Book Description:
From the bestselling author of Get With the Program! and Bob Greene's Total Body Makeover comes The Best Life Diet, a lifetime plan for losing weight and keeping it off. Bob Greene helped Oprah achieve her dramatic weight loss, and he can help you too. You'll eat the same delicious food that Oprah enjoys, and, just like Oprah, you'll have Bob to encourage you at every step. Unlike a celebrity, however, you don't need to hire a staff of experts to aid and advise you, because Bob's plan, easily tailored to an array of tastes, lifestyles, and activity levels, acts as your personal trainer and private nutritionist. Just open the book and let Bob help you get started down the path toward your best possible life.

What sets Bob apart from all the other experts who claim to have plans that work is that he admits that weight loss is difficult: seventeen years of watching people struggle to lose weight on a seemingly endless string of trendy crash diets, only to backslide and regain the pounds they've shed, have taught him that dropping pounds is not simply a numbers game. By acknowledging that it is not simple laziness but a complicated web of social rituals, cultural expectations, and habits that drives people to gain weight, Greene is able to attack the problem of weight loss realistically and offer not a short-lived, quick-fix formula, but a long-term program that accounts for the challenges and constraints of the real world.

Divided into three phases, The Best Life Diet gives you the tools you need to change your life. In each phase, you'll be asked to reexamine the decisions you make on a daily basis and gradually alter your habits to achieve lasting results. The book also includes easy-to-follow meal plans that make it simple to meet your daily energy and nutrient requirements, whether you are on the run and breakfast means a quick smoothie or you have time to shop for fresh produce and make something special.

You'll watch the weight disappear as you learn to prepare festive and flavorful dishes like Fire-Roasted Tomato-Shrimp Veracruz, Chicken Sausage Jambalaya, or Flank Steak with Chimichurri Topping and indulge in desserts like Roasted Peaches with Ricotta and Almonds or Apple Rhubarb Walnut Crisp. And for each delicious recipe, there is a detailed nutritional analysis, so you know exactly what you are eating and how it fits into your personal eating plan.

Most important, Bob's plan doesn't end once you've lost the weight. Instead, it gives you the tools you need to make living your best life second nature, because for Greene, a diet is not something you go "on" or "off" but a set of guidelines that will help you claim the life you deserve.

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster (December 26, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1416540660
ISBN-13: 978-1416540663

Customer Review: 3.5/5

Plum Lovin' (A Stephanie Plum Novel) by Janet Evanovich

From Publishers Weekly:
In this tart and hilarious "between-the-numbers" Stephanie Plum novel from bestseller Evanovich (Twelve Sharp), the Jersey bond enforcement agent, who already has two guys in her life (cop Joe Morelli and bounty hunter Ranger), reconnects with Diesel, a third heartthrob. Diesel offers Stephanie a deal: if he lets her find Annie Hart, a relationship coach who's become a big-ticket bond on Stephanie's Most Wanted List after fleeing a charge for a robbery she didn't commit, then Stephanie can do Annie a big favor by playing Cupid for a number of Annie's lovelorn clients, including a shy butcher, a desperate vet, an overworked single mom, a 30-something virgin and the marriage-phobic fellow who just happens to be Stephanie's pregnant sister's boyfriend. Diesel and Stephanie's short but sweet adventure ends on a teasing note that will leave fans hungry for the next juicy Plum-a-thon. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardcover: 176 pages
Publisher: St. Martin's Press (January 9, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0312306342
ISBN-13: 978-0312306342

Customer Review: 3.5/5

Charlotte's Web

From Publishers Weekly:
E.B. White's enduring classic celebrates in style with the release of the Charlotte's Web 5oth Anniversary Retrospective Edition. The handsome volume sports a clothbound cover framing original jacket art; inside, Rosemary Wells adds country color to Garth Williams's original b&w illustrations. An afterword by Peter F. Neumeyer illuminates White's life and work, including photographs of the author on his farm in Maine as well as pages from the seminal manuscript.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Hardcover: 192 pages
Publisher: HarperCollins; Reissue edition (October 15, 1952)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0060263857
ISBN-13: 978-0060263850

Customer Review: 4.5/5

The Proper Care and Feeding of Marriage by Dr. Laura Schlessinger

Book Description:

In the long-awaited follow-up to her groundbreaking, million-copy bestseller The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands, Dr. Laura now focuses on how men and women need to understand and appreciate the uniqueness of masculinity and femininity; what the best ways to relate, caretake, and nurture each other are; and how to bring a marriage back from the brink of disaster.

Dr. Laura asserts that in order to produce and sustain a wonderfully satisfying marriage, spouses must recognize and appreciate the polarity between the masculine and the feminine. Both husband and wife have power in the relationship, and each needs to realize this in order to ensure personal satisfaction. Using real-life examples from her call-in radio show, and giving real-life solutions, Dr. Laura focuses on the typical mistakes made by men and women in their relationships and shows how marriages can not only survive but thrive.

Hardcover: 240 pages
Publisher: HarperCollins (January 2, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0061142840
ISBN-13: 978-0061142840

Customer Review: 4/5

I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron

From The Washington Post's Book World/washingtonpost.com
Nora Ephron is funny. She has the credentials to prove it: 12 screenplays, including three nominated for Academy Awards; Heartburn, the story (with recipes) of the disintegration of her second marriage; and five collections of essays.

I Feel Bad About My Neck, her newest collection, is subtitled "And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman," though it might more accurately be called "A Measure of One Woman's Life." A certain melancholy pervades the humor here. The book opens with the title essay about aging and concludes with a rumination about death called "Considering the Alternative." Between are essays about books treasured along the way, thoughts "On Maintenance" (bodily upkeep), the stages of parenting, a timeline of beloved cookbooks, cabbage strudel, her love affair with an apartment and "The Story of My Life in 3,500 Words or Less."

There's more, but basically this is a kind of retrospective -- wry and amusing, as you'd expect, but also a bit strained and sad. It's a condensation of a life graced with privilege, which can make empathizing with Ephron a bit difficult. We all end up too aware of our own deterioration, but we don't all have our hair done twice a week or have our unwanted facial fuzz "threaded" by a woman who uses "a fantastic and thrilling method of hair removal she had learned in Russia." Then there are the three hours every six weeks spent having "four tiny, virtually invisible blondish streaks" added to her hair (which has already had the gray covered over), the weekly manicures and regular pedicures, and vast amounts of skin cream and bath oil. It's all brave (and funny) to talk about -- but odd, because if you've spent all that time and money trying to look younger and better, doesn't it make more sense not to tell anybody you've done it so they can think you just naturally look young and good? And then there's the time and the money. As far as money is concerned, she's earned it, no question about that -- but the specifics of what she's writing about, here and in other essays in the collection, are much less than universal. There are worlds where having your facial hair regularly threaded is as affordable as the judicious use of a pair of tweezers, but that choice is a luxury many women don't have.

Most women will love the essay about her purse. She may "feel bad" about her neck, but she "hates" her purse. She's writing here for women "who understand that their purses are reflections of negligent housekeeping, hopeless disorganization, a chronic inability to throw anything away" and who aren't wildly successful at changing -- at the right time -- from a winter purse to a summer one. Her list of permanent purse contents includes loose Tic-Tacs, lipsticks with no covers, leaky ballpoint pens and crumpled tissues that might have been used but equally well might not have been -- who can tell?

There's a lot of interesting advice in a chapter called "What I Wish I'd Known." She tells us that "the last four years of psychoanalysis are a waste of money," but she doesn't say how you know when the last four years begin. I like "If the shoe doesn't fit in the shoe store, it's never going to fit": So many things could be substituted for shoes in exactly the same sense. She tells us that "The plane is not going to crash," but later she notes "Overinsure everything." The essay's last words: "There are no secrets."

"The Story of My Life in 3,500 Words or Less" is a marvelous compilation of high and low points and moments of great clarity and learning. Under "What my mother said," there is "Everything is copy." This is a lesson the daughter learned well, as her ex-husbands would agree.

Despite the elegiac tone of this collection, it would be nice to think that we'll have Nora Ephron around for a long time. She's always good for an amusing line, a wry smile, and sometimes an abashed grin of recognition as she homes in on one of our own dubious obsessions.

"Goodbye" may be her final word in this uneven book, but with any luck, it'll turn out that she doesn't mean it.

Reviewed by Bunny Crumpacker
Copyright 2006, The Washington Post. All Rights Reserved.

Hardcover: 160 pages
Publisher: Knopf (August 1, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0307264556
ISBN-13: 978-0307264558

Customer Review: 4/5

The Hunters by W.E.B. Griffin

From Publishers Weekly:
Bestseller Griffin's ponderous third Presidential Agent novel picks up where the previous entry, The Hostage, left off, following U.S. Army Maj. Carlos "Charley" Castillo, a troubleshooter who takes orders directly from the president, as he fumbles about in South America and Europe. Castillo and his crew of specialists are trying to figure out who ordered the murder of American diplomat Jean-Paul Lorimer, who was shot to death in Uruguay while under suspicion of various international misdeeds, including a shady food-for-oil conspiracy in Iraq. Long stretches of dialogue and description come across more as showcases for Griffin's knowledge than as solid narrative, while Castillo and his cohorts never rise beyond their assigned roles. Fans will miss the more captivating heroes of Griffin's Brotherhood of War or the Corps series. Author tour. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Hardcover: 528 pages
Publisher: Putnam Adult (January 2, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0399153799
ISBN-13: 978-0399153792

Customer Review: 4.5/5

The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher

My Review:
Penelope Keeling, an aging mother and widow, suffers a minor heart attack and finds herself at the mercy of her oldest daughter Nancy's meddling concerns, and her youngest son Noel's greed. But she finds refuge in her middle child Olivia and in her memories, good and bad.

Nancy and Noel discover through an advertisement in the newspaper that one of their grandfather's paintings are being sold at auction and are worth a great deal of money. They try to persuade Penelope to part with some of her father's "lesser" paintings and hope she will be generous with the earnings from the sale. But Penelope is on to them and isn't so sure she's willing to part with the artwork, and definitely not her favorite painting called The Shell Seekers.
Throughout the story, the reader is treated to chapters focused on different characters, some taking us back to pre-WWII, other's after and still other's in more recent years and of course, the present. The history and stories that unfolds makes The Shell Seekers one of those rare books that keep the reader captivated and invoke the reader to feel for the characters.

My Rating: 5/5

Hardcover: 544 pages
Publisher: Gramercy (April 6, 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 051722285X
ISBN-13: 978-0517222850

Customer Review: 4.5/5

Shadow Dance: A Novel by Julie Garwood

Book Description:
Jordan Buchanan is thrilled that her brother and best friend are tying the knot. The wedding is a lavish affair–for the marriage of Dylan Buchanan and Kate MacKenna is no ordinary occasion. It represents the joining of two family dynasties. The ceremony and reception proceed without a hitch–until a crasher appears claiming to be a MacKenna guest. The disheveled and eccentric professor of medieval history warns that there’s “bad blood” between the couple’s clans, stemming from an ancient feud that originated in Scotland, and involving the Buchanan theft of a coveted MacKenna treasure.

Jordan has always led a cautious life and has used her intelligence and reason to become a successful businesswoman. So she is intrigued but skeptical of the professor’s claims that the feud has been kept alive by the grave injustices the Buchanans have perpetrated over the centuries. But when Noah Clayborne, a close family friend and a man who has never let a good time or a pretty girl pass him by, accuses Jordan of being trapped in her comfort zone, she determines to prove him wrong and sets out on a spontaneous adventure to the small, dusty town of Serenity, Texas, to judge the professor’s research for herself.

Maneuvering through a close-knit community in which everyone knows everyone else’s business, Jordan never anticipates the danger and intrigue that lie in her path, nor the threat that will shadow her back to Boston, where even in familiar surroundings, her life is at risk.

A powerful thug who rules by fear, a man who harbors a simmering secret, and an unexpected romance that pierces all defenses–beloved author Julie Garwood weaves these dazzling elements into a brilliant novel of romantic suspense. Shadow Dance is a searing tango of passion and peril.

Hardcover: 352 pages
Publisher: Ballantine Books (December 26, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0345453867
ISBN-13: 978-0345453860

Customer Review: 4/5

Cesar's Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems by Cesar Millan with Melissa Jo Peltier

Amazon.com:
Fans of the National Geographic Channel's The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan will be grateful for Cesar's Way, an accessible guide to help new and current dog owners better understand the needs of their beloved pets. If you are not yet a fan, try to catch a couple of episodes of the remarkable show--you will be amazed, impressed, and motivated to create a healthier, more fulfilling relationship with your dog. In Cesar's Way, Cesar explains that dogs are not complicated, and despite what various owners think--not human. They rely on three key elements in their lives: exercise, discipline, and affection (in that order). "Problem dogs" can be attributed to "problem owners," owners who don't understand and misinterpret their dog's behavior. Cesar's Way is really a training program for dog owners, with chapters devoted to understanding the "power of the pack," taking responsibility for "how we screw up our dogs," and learning how to manage aggression. Cesar's book (a must-have for new and old dog owners) moves beyond basic obedience school techniques, and teaches owners how to change unwanted behavior by better understanding their "best friends." --Daphne Durham

Hardcover: 234 pages
Publisher: Harmony; RAO edition (April 4, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0307337332
ISBN-13: 978-0307337337

Customer Review: 4/5