BOOK: Angry Housewives Eating Bonbons by Lorna Landvik

Angry Housewives Eating Bonbons by Lorna Landvik

another something about me book, chunkster challenge 2
Minnesota book in the Booking Around the 50 States challenge

another something about me challenge book, chunkster challenge 2

I didn't even realize that this would qualify as a chunkster, but it had over 480 pages, so it just makes it in. The back cover sums up this book quite well - 'a guilty pleasure' and a 'light snappy read.' It reminds me of the type of books I read in the 1980s by Judith Krantz, the beginnings of the chick lit genre. It is a sweeping book, covering forty years of five friends, set in Minnesota. The friends, all quite different, form a book club to get through the sixties and seventies when women needed more intellectual stimulation than they could get as stay at home moms, or housewives as they were known. Each has a very different personality but they support each other through life changes, husbands and kids, plus secrets they are keeping. There is nothing too sinister or terrible happening here, but life in general. Imagine Wisteria Lane lite.

It took me a little while to keep all the characters straight, but they are quite different and physically described enough to make an impression. My biggest complaint was the point of view and the time line. The book is divided into many sections, according to their book of the month, and each section gets a different narrator, sometimes in the first person, sometimes third, and sometimes it seemed to change part way through the section. It allowed each woman to get her story told but it felt a little jumpy. And the years would jump dramatically within sections at times.

But all in all, what I would call a beach book - easy to pick up and set down, easy to follow with different story lines and well defined characters and interesting plots, if somewhat predictable. You can't complain too much about a book like this, because it is what it is - a guilty pleasure, an easy read. This could have qualified for my themed reading challenge, because books play an important part of the story line.

Tinylittlelibrarian picked it for her book in the Something About Me challenge because I belong to a book club of great women, like the ladies in this book. And this was one of the few books that all of our members really enjoyed. Also, it's set in Minnesota, which is where my husband's from and I love visiting there every summer. Since two of her picks were two of my all time favorite books - Anne and Bridget, I really wanted to read one of her picks and I am so glad I did. I was able to think about her while I was reading, and wonder which angry housewife she is!

BOOK: The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

Chunkster Challenge (545 pages), Themed Reading Challenge (books about books), Young Adult Challenge, Notable Books Challenge


A few comments:

1. I am an ostrich. I bury my head in the sand when I'm scared. I avoid, avoid, avoid to deal with things I don't want to deal with. That's why this book took me as long as it did to read. It was put down and left for several days at a time. As beautiful as the writing was, and it was beautiful, holy cow! As beautiful as it was, I could only read a few chapters at a time. Which surprised me, because I usually devour books when I read them, speeding through like a Tasmanian Devil, staying up too late to finish a page, a chapter, the whole damn book. But I had to protect myself from this book somewhat, because of the intensity of emotion.

2. I think I am done reading Holocaust books. They are awful, depressing, and the uplifting part of any book, that is always there, is only against the background of depravity and horror that I don't like to delve into. Again, the ostrich. I saw A Beautiful Life at the theater, and it was beautiful, but I remember this horrible, frantic feeling, about halfway through as the father and son were heading to the camp: What year is this? Is it 1944? or '45? How much hope can I hope for here? Because we all know how that whole thing turned out, and there aren't many good endings when you are headed for a camp.

3. Marcus Zusak writes the most beautiful, uplifting books. There is a hope on his soul of the beauty capable in humans even in the most horrific of settings. His writing gently caresses you while reading, saying there, there, we'll get through this and you will see what you should see. Have faith in me, and the human race: we are capable of great good.

4. Death may be one of the best characters I've ever read. His perspective on humans, and his gentle caring were the best part of the book. Such a terrific narrator for life in Germany during the Holocaust.

5. I liked the divisions of the book, into ten books with little chapters within. It made it easier for me to read, (see note 1), and when I saw the significance at the end, it was even better. Again, Zusak is an amazing writer.

6. After the end of the book, go back and reread the Prologue. It is probably a good idea with most books, but by the end, the beginning made so much more sense.

7. Do we need a summary? Liesel is sent to live with foster parents in Munich at the beginning of WW2. Hans and Rosa take and love Liesel, as well as a Jewish man, Max, in their basement. Liesel touches a few characters, especially Rudy, her neighbour who dresses up like Jesse Owens and runs, and the Mayor's wife, keeper of the library, around which much of the novel revolves, and Max. Death is always around. Books and words are very important, as they should be.

8. Extra Credit Assignment: Compare Hans and Rosa to Matthew and Marilla in Anne of Green Gables.
Both take in an orphan, damaged, looking for love and support. Matthew and Hans immediately know how to love, unabashedly, the little girl thrust in to their lives. The child has an immediate connection to the Hans and Matthew. This is where the phrase 'kindred spirits' comes from. Marilla and Rosa are brisk, not showing overt displays of love, and it seems unclear what the relationship is between the Marilla/Anne and Rosa/Liesel. However, in both cases, they show their emotions less freely, but with no less passion and devotion. Their love of the girls, and Hans and Matthew, are the most touching moments of the books, because it is more unexpected.

9. War is no good. Both sides lose, everyone loses. Except Death. He does very well in wars.

BOOK: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Prepare to have you heart wrenched, you feelings conflicted and to thank God for your healthy family. Anna, a thirteen year old girl sues her parents for medical emancipation. The reason: she doesn't want to be made to donate a kidney to her sister, Kate, who is dying from renal failure due to complications from a lifelong struggle with a rare form of leukemia. The catch or modern take, is that Anna was created, or designed to be a perfect match to her sister, who had leukemia at a very young age. She has been a donor to her sister their whole lives.

The family dynamics, including older brother Jesse, a verifiable delinquent crying out for attention, and the mother and dad are played out using different point of views for each chapter. Everyone, including the lawyer and a court appointed guardian tell the story. I knew from the first chapter that this would be a difficult book to read, because how do you chose between your children? How can the parents and the children ever make the 'right' decision?

Picoult tells a wonderful story, however difficult is was to read. I was sobbing by the end, always my judge of an excellent story, because I grew to care about the characters and was thinking how I would deal with a situation. I was transported into the novel. I would definately look for another Picoult novel. This was my third Chunkster for the Chunkster Challege.

UPDATE: challenges

There seems to be a big bunch of new challenges starting on June 1st, so I have been putting a burn on to finish up some old challenges. The new, shiny challenges look like more fun, so I don't want to have these hanging over my head.



Spring Reading Thing: I completed a good bunch of books I had been wanting to read.

1. Reef by Romesh Gunesekera (completed March 24, 2007)

2. The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler (completed March 25, 2007)

3. A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (completed March 29,2007)

4. History of the World in 10.5 Chapters by Julian Barnes (completed April 6, 2007)

5. The Virgin Suicides by Jeffery Eugenides (completed April 13, 2007)

6. His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman
book 1 The Golden Compass (completed April 26, 2007)
book 2 The Subtle Knife (completed April 29, 2007)
book 3 The Amber Spyglass (completed May 22, 2007)

Other than The Virgin Suicides, I really liked them all. They were an assortment of genres and styles, but I like a variety of topics and styles. I did this challenge, because I really liked the button. Challenge planners: never underestimate the power of a pretty button!

Once Upon a Time Challenge :

I really wasn't sure about this one, mostly because I don't read a lot of this type of book. However, once I was committed to reading His Dark Materials, it seemed a natural to add a few more and get another button! This helped me get a few books on my list of books from 50_books at livejournal:

1. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman


2. The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman


3. The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman


4. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett


5. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry


6. Coraline by Neil Gaiman

I think I picked the cream of the crop in this genre of fantasy and folklore. I read American Gods, also by Gaiman just before this challenge started. It was also excellent.

The Chunkster Challenge, along with the Winter Classics, started all this madness for me. I didn't even really blog about the Classics Challenge. The Chunkster was a real challenge for me, because I signed up before all the other fun challenges began, so this one got adapted, a bit. I read:

1. American Gods by Neil Gaiman
2. The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory
3. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (will be finished in days - I can't put it down!)

I listed 4 books and hoped to finish 2 of them. Three definately got done. I have some guilt about using His Dark Materials Books for so many challenges. This is how I justify it: I had five other books listed for the Spring Reading Thing, and could have left these off and felt quite accomplished. So if I pretend I used his Dark Materials book 1 and 2 for the Once Upon a Time Challenge and then the third book, which was a Chunkster, over 500 pages, it could have been a chunkster. Then things look more balanced to me and still accomplished. I'm never too clear how 'carved in stone' some of these challenges are. I completed what I said,and also the spirit of the challenges.

Now, bring on

• Nonfiction 5 (one per month)
• Summer Reading Challenge Round 2
• Summer Mystery Reading Challenge
• Southern Reading Challenge

I'll post another update on these newer challenges later.

CHALLENGE: Chunkster Update

This challenge is quite a challenge for me for a few reasons. The biggest reason is all the other crazy challenges that have come up, which makes picking up a big book all the more intimidating, because it will be a time investment that might affect the other challenges. My original goal was to read a minimum of two from a list of four books :

1. American Gods by Neil Gaiman


2. The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory


3. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult


4. With No One as My Witness by Elizabeth George

I have managed to finish the first two, woo hoo! (reviews at the links) My Sister's Keeper is barely a chunkster, but it is over 400 pages, and I hope to read that very soon. I also have another entry that should fit into this challenge, somewhat. I am reading His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman for the Spring Reading Thing. Each book is about 400 pages, so if when I finish them, by June, they could be considered as a large chunkster? Either way, I have met my minimum goal for this challenge, with the possibility of completing four, by the end of June.

I can't even pick up the Elizabeth George book. I was putting off reading it before all these other challenges began. Now? Scares the bejeeses out of me. I love her books, but they are so dense, they take forever.

My reading and blogging have changed so much since I found this challenge way back in December. I only used livejournal then, and have since developed this book blog. I added American Gods to some other challenges because I knew I would read it for this one. I've met some really interesting readers, and have got caught up in this whirlwind of great books, challenges, reviewing and blogging. I can also see how my reading has changed over since December, both quality and quantity. I'll check back in at Bookfoolery and Babble closer to June and see what's happening there. It's been a good challenge, because it has been more of a struggle to pick these books up. Both books were beyond excellent and I loved them. So it has been a very successful challenge all around.

BOOK: The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory

I was glad to get another Chunkster finished, and the sign of a good chunkster is that it takes less time to read than a regular 250 page book - I'm looking at you Virgin Suicides. It takes less time because you read it at every spare moment, enveloped in the world created by the author.

So, I spent my weekend at Henry VIII's court, amidst the intrigue and treachery and decadent lifestyle of sixteenth century England. I haven't read much historical fiction lately, all caught up with classics and challenges, and I had forgotten how much I love a good epic tale. I love how with historical fiction, you can know the outcome - Anne Boleyn isn't going to survive- and yet you want to keep reading to find out what will happen to the characters and how the author will get to the outcome. The characters of Anne Boleyn, her sister Mary, the narrator, and their brother George, were the center of this tale and their closeness and friendship and stick togetherness was my favorite part of the story. Through all the double crossing and treachery, these three stuck together and helped and supported each other to the very end.
Philippa Greogory's interview at the back of the book states she wants readers to :

• take away a terrific reading experience which has absorbed them and moved them and excited them. check



• have a new vision of the Tudor period and some interesting information about the role of women and the inequalities of English society check



• understand that while the Tudor court was glamorous there was deep poverty and that was a normal way of life check



• get a sense of the Tudor landscape, the courts and the city of London and the countryside check



• get an insight into the psychology of the characters check

And the best part about this book: two more books! The Constant Princess, about Katherine of Aragon the first wife of Henry VIII, and The Boleyn Inheritance, which looks at the next three or four wives after Anne Boleyn as Henry continues his quest to have a male to inherit the throne. And we all know how that turns out. Yet, I'll read the book to see how Gregory imagines it all played out.

BOOK: American Gods by Neil Gaiman

This is a book I read for several reasons: it was on the top 20 reads list from the 50_book challenge at livejournal, I picked it for the Chunkster Challenge, and then it was a 2000s book for the 15books/15decades challenge. And, it was a pretty interesting read.
It reminded me of a Stephen King book in that Gaiman sets up a world that has supernatural elements, but does it in such a believable way that it all makes sense. I really liked the main character Shadow; just an ordinary man, but open to ideas, and also thinking for himself in the face of unbelievable situations. I really rooted for him. I also liked the premise about the gods we worship today and from long ago and how those long ago gods survive today. Easy to read and lots to think about, a well written book with fascinating characters and situations. What more can you ask for in a novel.