Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Potato Peel Pie

This was a good book but I really do not like reading letters back and forth, it was confusing to keep track of people. Daddy Long Legs is also written in letters. I didn't like that either. But after getting over the letter thing I enjoyed the book. It was predictable when it came to the romance part yet unpredictable as the story unfolds when it came to the WWII. The stories were unique and haunting. I am glad that nothing was hidden and despite the horrors people lived through People found humor as they looked back on some of the situations. Not that the WWII was funny, just that is was good to see that many people joined together to laugh as they released some of the built up trauma they had been through.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Morality For Beautiful Girls by Alexander McCall Smith

Alexander McCall Smith is a guy and when reading the books you are just sure it is a very smart old lady writing in the voice of a heavy set an African women. Surprising! It is just a very imaginative and creative old English guy that writes really well.

I really like these books. This is the 4th in the series. They are so funny and very unpredictable. They are also full of ideas to think about. This one was mainly about how men think of women and how some women are just stupid and that is why men think of them as sex symbols. It is like we set ourselves up when we forget how to stand strong and take charge of what we do best.

Whole BOOK.

Monday, June 14, 2010

Tears Of The Giraffe book two from the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

More mystery uncovered in Africa by Mma Romotswe. These books kind of grow on you. They are unique to me because I usually don't hear about mysterious things in Africa. The last detective books I read were Nancey Drew. She never had cases like these.

I also like that this book tells the stories of the people. They get into the moral issues like telling the whole truth or only part of the truth. They talk about how it used to be and how the world is changing. The loss of respect for your elders and even sometimes ones self. Very thought provoking and with humor.

Whole Books

Net Force: The Ultimate Escape #3 by Tom Clancey and Steve Pieczenik

Another fun book, this time in a virtual air flight simulation program. One of the kids in the Net Force's team moves away but mysteriously shows up in the game and asks for help. The NF team knows he is in danger and no one will listen to them. They end up doing whatever it takes to help their friend. They of course get in trouble but also are commended for their ingenuity.

I liked the history in this book. It almost felt like historical fiction instead of YA Fiction. The History was all about past battles of the world from the sky. They got to fly everything in all kinds of wars from WWI, WWII and Pearl Harbor. Then a bunch of battles I never heard of like the Bosnian Crisis and Wild Weasel missions. They flew MiGs, F-15 fighters, Sopwith Camel, and P-51 Mustangs.

I think my dad would like this book.

Healing Book/ Almost Whole

Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Net Force Book Two: The Deadliest Game by Tom Clancy and Steve Pieczenik

I have been sucked in the Young Adult Series of Net Force. This was another great adventure this time in a virtual reality game. Deep in cyber space there is a group of kids ready to take on villian that want to break laws you didn't even know existed around computers!

This time Megan and Leif are charactors playing a war game when all the key players of the game get "bounced".(passwords being wiped out, viruses or charactors being sabotaged in the game) They have to uncover the mystery of who is doing this to real people outside of the game. It gets dangerous and exciting when somebody or persons have been taking the game too seriously. When it goes from burglary to attempted murder the investigation takes on a whole new world of the real game.

Broken book/almost whole

Monday, June 07, 2010

Leaning Into the Curves by Anderson and Morris

Don't judge a book by its cover! I read the little description on the back of the book...a retired couple joining a Mormon motorcycle gang...uh would there be anything I could relate too. Surprisingly, I loved this book! It was slightly cheesy yet funny and insightful. I related more then I thought because I also am not the biggest fan of my husbands hobby of riding motorcycles. After reading this book which presented quite a few facts and different view points on motorcycling I can honestly say I would love to ride a motorcycle and have my husband ride more too!

The book turned into motorcycle therapy for me. The main character in the book, Molly, also had to work through some issues with riding. She was so afraid of motorcycles that she was completely blinded to anything good about them and was putting her hysteria and biased onto her children and grandchildren. After she learned step by step everything there is to know about motorcycles from a really good friend, she was able to come to terms with riding and excepting her husband love of riding.

I love the interaction between the husband and wife in this book. It was so real as they argued or did the silent treatment or tried to second guess each other. Luckily they also took time to pray and were patient enough to listen for inspiration before their marriage became one more sad divorce. They reminded me of my mom and dad after my dad retired. I can also see a bit of my husband and myself going through some of their same conflicts. I think reading this book will actually help me look at my life and relationship with my spouse a little different.

Even though the book was about an older couple I would recommend this book to anyone that just wants to read a good adventure between two people, or if you like motorcycles or not it would be a good one to read.

I didn't know there was a mormon motorcyle gang which is actually called TRA - Temple Riders Association. So they technically aren't a gang just a group of people that like to ride and do Temple work along the way. MOst of the people are retired couples and they ride touring bikes like Gold Wings. The wife sits behind the husband. They map out a route with plenty of tourist attractions and sightseeing along the way to a temple somewhere in the USA. Sometimes the trip takes a week or two and sometimes it is a day trip. There are also single members in the group and women sometimes drive their own motorcycle.

Tuesday, June 01, 2010

Virtual Vandals by Tom Clancy; Young Adults, No. 1

This turned out to be a clean and fun book based on the Net Force books Tom Clancy wrote for adults. This one was written for young adults or kids. The main characters are High School age kids. They were very clever and computer savvy, they go on quite a few adventures. They solve mysteries and out-smart bad guys.

The book takes place in the year 2025. Almost everything is run through your computer in a virtual world but the kids still have to go to normal High School. Most of the story takes place in a virtual world interacting with holographic images of others while the real person is sitting home connected to the computer through chips inserted in their skin.

Net Force was made to protect the United States of America from all online criminal activity. There is a group of teenage computer geniuses who sometimes know more than adults, who are known as the Net Force Explorers. Kind of like ROTC for kids that might want to go into the Army but aren't old enough yet.

(Spoiler Alert)
In the book the kids work together to uncover a plot to take over a section of the city from an evil genius kid seeking revenge for his mother's death. There are the rich kids and the elite kids like Senator's children and some that have amnesty because there parents are foreign diplomats living in the US. Of course there are the poor sections of DC with the gangs too.

I really liked the way the book moved right along and was original.

Broken Book, well almost Whole