The Reading Group

Right before I read The Sisters, I read Elizabeth Noble's The Reading Group. This was the story of 5 women who come together monthly to discuss their books and, consequently, their lives. Through the course of a year, we see the lives and relationships of these very different women change. Together, they experience births, deaths, affairs, divorce, and raising children.
I am torn on this one. I loved the characters. I loved the emphasis on strong female relationships, be it between mother and daughter or between best friends. I related to certain characters and their issues with their relationships. These women were enduring and empowering.
I loved the references to great books and movies (like my favorite, Gone With the Wind :]). And I cried. Granted I had had a glass of wine at the time, but I laid in the tub, book in one hand- white zin in the other, while tears ran unchecked down my face. And we know I love a book that can make me feel that much.
However, I hated that it gave away the endings to the books the women read. Nerd that I am, that would be the one thing I didn't like. I have this never ending, always expanding list of books to read and I was excited to have a book filled with 12 recommendations. But in discussing the books, the characters gave away the best and most important parts and ultimately ruined them for me.
So I guess the bottom line is that I did like The Reading Group, but if I could do it over, I would read their reading list first. But like I said, that could just be me being a nerd.

The Sisters

Well, as of this past Saturday, I am officially a college graduate! What that means for you all is that I finally have time to write about the books that I have been reading for the past few months. Not to mention, I am back in Tennessee and got a little carried about at the bookstore again, so there will be no shortage of books to come either.
Although I have a bunch of books that I am now ready to write about, I'm going to start with the most recent because it was probably my favorite. I found The Sisters, by Nancy Jensen, on a bargain table at the bookstore down here that sucks up all my money. And for the record, I've found that some of the best books are found hidden on the sale tables.
Anyway, it took me a few months to getting around to reading it with that endless list of mine, but once I did I couldn't put it down. It is the story of Bertie and Mabel, two orphaned sisters living with their drunk of at step dad in the 1920s. The girls are all each other has in the world, and Mabel would do anything to protect Bertie. However, on the day of Bertie's 8th grade graduation, she discovers that her step dad has hung himself and her boyfriend and her sister have run away together. Heartbroken, Bertie is left alone with questions and no way to get answers.
The story then follows the sisters and their descendants through the next 90 years and three generations, through the Great Depression, World War II, and Vietnam and into the new millennium. We see how misunderstandings, stubbornness, and silence can change your entire life.
I really enjoyed this book. I loved figuring out the ages of each character every chapter and trying to picture them in that era, from their hair and clothes to the type of music they'd be listening to. I loved the historical references.  And of course, I loved the strong female characters. It was frustrating to know as an outsider that everything would be fixed if Bertie and Mabel just talked to each other instead of remaining alone out of stubbornness and fear. I thought that The Sisters was a great story and taught a great lesson.

Sharp Objects

I have developed an obsession with Gillian Flynn. This woman has easily, and quickly, become one of my favorite authors. Not an easy place to earn.
This is actually not the book that I planned on writing about this week, but after rapidly finishing Sharp Objects, I couldn't wait to write about it. For those of you who read my post on Gone Girl, you know how much I loved it. I was anxious to read other books by Flynn, and Sharp Objects was definitely a worthy follow up.
When Camille Preaker, a journalist from Chicago, is sent back to her hometown of Wind Gap, MO, to cover what appears to be a serial murder of two little girls, she is reluctant to face the dysfunctional family that she has avoided for years: an overbearing, neurotic mother, a half-sister who is practically a stranger, and the ghost of a sister nearly 30 years dead. Flynn intersects the mystery at hand with mysteries of Camille's past, and you are desperate to solve them both.
This book was fantastic. It was dark and disturbing, but mysterious, and at times, oddly hopeful. Flynn is witty and makes things that should disturb you to your core almost relatable. She paints a descriptive picture of the emotions and struggles, and brings to life each dysfunctional character.
I absolutely recommend Sharp Objects. Like Gone Girl, you spend the whole time trying to predict the ending, trying to solve the murder, and every prediction you make is wrong. Even when you think that everything is solved, you are again surprised by the ending.

Recipe for a Happy Life

I am pretty sure that I have already explained what happens to me when I go into a bookstore. I get lost. I feel this overwhelming desire to read every single book on every single shelf, and it gives me anxiety that I can't do that. So now, in order to limit the time and money that I spend wandering the aisles feeling incredibly inadequate, I try to prepare a list of books to look for. But every once in a while, when I have nothing to do and no place to be, I let myself roam. And it was while I was roaming that I found Brenda Janowitz's Recipe for a Happy Life.

I picked it out when I was feeling a little down, and the recipe for a happy life would have been very nice to have. It is the story of Hannah Goodman, a New York City lawyer who retreats back to her grandmothers Hampton home after an unfortunate incident and bad break up with her boyfriend. 

Throughout the course of the summer, Hannah learns that sometimes you have to stop waiting to be happy and just be happy. 

I thought that this book was cute. It was a nice, easy read, and a great pick me up when you are feeling like your life is not going the way you want it to. It was relate able, and I grew attached to Hannah and her grandmother. 

That being said, it was often hard to know what the story line was. There was always so much going on. There is Hannah's relationship with her mother, her dead husband, her grandmothers past, a pregnancy and a choice she must make between two men. Although this gave the story a lot of depth, I was constantly looking for what the story was about. Was it about the relationships between three generations of women? Was it how Hannah survived and moved on after the loss of her husband? Or was it about her choosing the right man?

But then again, maybe that was the point. Maybe there wasn't supposed to be a specific issue, it was just supposed to be life. It is messy, and complicated, and there isn't a story line. 

I did really enjoy this book. It makes you feel like it is normal to be afraid and want to run away, or to constantly feel like you are looking for something more. But the truth is, you can't spend your life trying to be happy or waiting to be happy. The recipe for a happy life is that there is no recipe. Your life is what you make of it. So stop waiting, stop trying, stop worrying, and just be happy. 

The Red Garden

I absolutely love history, and there is nothing better than when it ties into my reading. In The Red Garden, Alice Hoffman traces the history of the town of Blackwell Massachusetts from it's founding in 1750 through the present. Although fiction, The Red Garden was incredibly believable. Hoffman ties in real historical facts and events with realistic and likable characters, and it is easy to forget that the stories aren't real.
Each chapter chronicles a different story in a different year, and Hoffman subtly intertwines the stories and characters as time goes on. You hear mention of characters from the previous stories and it is sad to see young girls grow old and magical moments forgotten.
You are able to see how the town grows from it's original four families, as well as the cultural changes of 250 years. From the Civil War, to the World Wars, to the hippie days of Vietnam and the fashions of the 80's, you see the times change in one small town.
The Red Garden was full of captivating stories of love, passion, tragedy, and survival. They were stories of fiercely strong women, and people struggling to discover who they are and who they are meant to be. It was both dark and magical at the same time, and when I wasn't halfway through I already knew that I would miss it.
I think that this book was fantastic. There is at least one story and one character for everyone to relate to. It makes you appreciate history. It makes you believe in fate.

Gone Girl

The main thing to remember about Gone Girl is this: Whatever you think, you are wrong.

I've been hearing about this book for months, and I finally bought in on my post-Christmas book binge. I knew the story line: A woman disappears on her 5 year anniversary. It had to have been the husband. Right?

I got into the story immediately. It switches between present day Nick (husband) and past diary entries from Amy (wife), and what made it so great was that I sided with each character as I was reading their story. I never knew whether or not Nick killed her, even when it sounded like he was blatantly admitting it. He wanted to connect with his wife, but she had changed. She was cold and nagging, and honestly just a big ol' b-word. 

Then I'd read her chapters. And I found her incredibly relatable. I thought that she was laid back and down to earth. Sure, her marriage had it's problems, but she wanted to fix it. She loved Nick and she was willing to fight for him. She was trying. And he was a sexist a-hole. I couldn't pick a side. I was constantly on my toes. 

And everything that you think is wrong. 

This book was fantastic. There is really no other word to describe it. Every time I formed an opinion, every time I thought I could predict what would happen next, I would be proven wrong. 

Gillian Flynn is a genius. Her writing is easy and witty, and even in the midst of a high anxiety, terribly dramatic scene, she could still make me laugh. Every single character became real to me and I couldn't put the book down. 

I cannot say enough about it. My mind is blown. This is a book that I am going to need to recover from, like when I read Gone With The Wind. It is going to take me some time to come out of this story. 

The Art of Racing in the Rain

I have been hearing about The Art of Racing in the Rain for years now and when I finally got around to picking it up, I wasn't sure what to expect. I honestly didn't even really know what it was about it, but within pages, I was hooked. This is the story of a man fighting a dramatic custody battle, as told by his dog, Enzo.
In the last days of his life, Enzo reminisces about his time with Denny, remembering the very first moment he was chosen out of his liter. He watches Denny fall in love, get married, and start a family, and builds a special and individual relationship with each member of that family. He adores them. They are his. And I grew attached to the characters, too. I felt for them. Whether I loved them or hated them, they were real to me. I appreciated those that were kind to Denny and Enzo, and I was angry at those who weren't.
When Denny's life begins to fall apart, Enzo remains a silent comfort. He repeatedly longs for the words to express his thoughts, but is resigned to nudges and barks, as "gestures are all he has".
It was so heartwarming to see the way that Enzo idolizes Denny. He constantly sees the best in him and believes in him even when he is at his lowest point. It made me look at my dogs and wonder what they were thinking, and spend a little extra time scratching behind their ears.
The Art of Racing in the Rain makes you look at your life and your relationships, because this innocent and enlightened mind of a dog makes you want to be a better person. Enzo has so much to teach about treating others and appreciating the little things, like thumbs and small tongues.
There is something so special about the relationship between a dog and his human, and Garth Stein illuminated that in The Art of Racing in the Rain. Amidst the heartache and drama, the ups and the downs, there is always someone loving and believing in you, even if they don't have the right tongue to form the words.